NEWSfl€lD PUBUCATIO
X SPECTRUM
No.18
JULY 1985
Prisoner
of the evil
GARGOYLE
7
4
I
'4^
)
leatSegd, we
iow a thing or two aboyt qualify.
ill reputation fa4*b««&|oig«d in the
Wof Id's most com[ietitJvd maikct, the
lAmerfcan arcades. Oiaccriiing a|cade
l^tayeiRTllilthey know a th tnjArtw&j
u WM; ha?^ ^ote<J^ our giimes ipme m
HI KfMi uem-r^
rrrrrr r ^^^
Monkey Mountain in CONGO BON<
immber i m the Biflbciaid Cbairtiiii
19B4. You 11 rjde hippos, dodge
charging rhiaos and do battle wfth
limgk creareresrbotmafce sur*:you
don t end up as a lunch tiiie tie^t foi i
flshf T 1
inno^atidn as one chart topper ha^
foUowed another
But whf should the ircaderplaye
hif c ill ^kt imhm Wf ic aske4
Of ^oufM thef eWas no reason at
and so we decided to bring dur gaitei
hope and let ail the fa mily hiai^ ^a-
pidce of tbe action. Wt biire ke^wii ten
thi progianK fq r many of th4 popu m
hoinc coaipute fe and How CTi
can have 4 smashing time
ly Midway^s UP" jf DO\^.
ni9 13 S TTUSlldlCtJ nnnOrpStS UICABI;
vou b4sh yotli wayjovejr rough ro^ds.
reryone
grapMo- tblilis axtd spillt, varlity and frofen junibr to grandina can iuve a go?
SPY HUNTER
TAPPER
DP-N'DOWN
CONGO BONGO
ZAXXON
*«
BUCK ROGERS
Commodore 64
NOW
NOW
NOW
NOW
NOW'
NOW
f-MtlKgi
Spectrum
NOW
Amstrad
SOON
NOW
SOON
SOON
NOW
NOW
SOON
SOON
SOON
SOON
SOON
leap q^ad erjds, ca^yoni ind crfili
— an y on e whoge^ ia tJae^ayf H<>7 !i
the Fifty Metei Coqirersiot^ Poll.
OT H ro Wlf ii on4 MmMsk bit tljat
leiUypi
And[if_ , .
to be jhe loMdestTwackie^t ulo^n bar
tliete'lever been. The action gets
craty^nt of iand at the otrerworkid
bar tender sf rambles to serve his
tinrttlf Und frr ry tninrtyl cuatomcii,
.IW T fVit
3^1
i
alien saucers. Yont rdc« ag^dost death
esterti Saioon to die Spdr ts Bat.
tltett m tbe fikm d^tKiog Pimfc Hm^^ost b«g%ml Prepare lof b4ttk wttb—
isd into tbe SpK^e Bai wher4 tbe yoio^ most po wefful oinav. .1 Amb
r€#Uy af ^ out of this worUl | mo!|b€i iimpi Yaa m^it lilt liif d^
teAR^iBfthliig less wtU oi
fiicl. Aim tteacfyi but httrry. . {f qmi
wRb SPYHUNTSR^
firom BdJy Uidway. But dcm't expect
jnyfhjffif-^ ola xesti. Aftet ail. tiUs was
ftf Qunbei 1 aicadf game of 19S4 and
low you're in the hot-peat of th«
'^"■ndilfit machine an four wheels.
+
isdaDgeiouslylow!
A|id fin^y there's the legeMarf
ZAZXON-^the yliiniateexpenencep
^__,. __, ^^ -fon*ll pilot a space fighter tfafouglr
Tou re'after enemy spies. The siMationl force fields and enemy fiie on your
ji life md death. Tou'U need every
T^eapoci you>e got -machine guns and^
|ukiedmissile:o. oil slicks and smoite
Mieettff bqc ^p^ieBAB y is e^er yw iierff *
On thei road, hi the water, even in the
air. So you'll have to be more than fart
^^ stay alive in SPYHDNTER; you'll
leed brains and guti m weUl
Fly into the Z$th Century and
the m^de of the legendary BUdK
jfcOGKaS. Skillfuily ilip th fougll
w^iyielectrOTi posts.Hoifeui V
SCORE 0^9370
FUEL
AAAAAA WWW
IlE
to youf and opw under th« U.S. Gold
Ubel ybu'tl Gbd vcnricms hi thej
Spectium and Amstrad too With U,Sr
Gold and Sega, the arcade winnAn,
you'll be A wjnaei to o, Hajidsdqmif
I
mWon td do haltle wfli tlie|dcadl|
ZAJtaOR CouHtlcw ot kerahl v e gof i c
before: now it's vour turn to do batlle.
You'll qukkl y i^ why feAll^M to
of otjiy ten games tb«th«Te made t^
into Electfonk Qvam'iAm^f^i^n b4U
ofF«3ie^4
Commodoie 64 Cassette £9-95
THE ARCADE
Conuiiodore 64 DsA,
Spectmiti 48K
iti I Biaf Ukliv^u%. £a. M a^m nkarnd. cmCO iOilaO li «
^af Ukliv^U%. £a. 411 ii
I
£12.9$
£7:95
t ir4.¥ IfkdM^truj C«itvr,
fr m i^aU [Utpflin M
ip^l
•JONAH-
BARRINGIDN'S
^
^ FOR,
Commodore 64
and all
48K Spectrums
£7.95
'^cS'7/^
-y
L II the ^>e^ ^nd exLcitemefiC of
chanipiofiship squash is ik>w ava/labic ai your
fingemps m a game so realiitic - yotj ilncrfid 1
shower aficrwardsf
Written with the help of Jonah Bii ringtOfi, forrTief World
Squash Champion, the game keeps to the intermtional
Squ3&h Rjicqoot Federation rules as for as is possibie. You
serve in 3 3D gl^ss-backed coun to play against your
con^puter, or, using ttie games two player option you can
challenge a fnend.
There are A leveb of drfriculiy. and depending how fn you
are you can play 1 . 3 or S game notches! Check your score
wit)i (be on 5^reen display, but as your eyes a/c too busy
watching the balL Jonah flarnngton acting as marker c^Hs out
Che score for you Alt this is due to a programm*ng
brcakitirough that enables your computer to accurately
reproduce the human voice without any hardware
add-ons!
The game also incorponitcs a User Defined
Jpystick/Kcys option whjch means that you can
%t your keyboard to suit you, or' play with
Ik. |U5t about any make ol (oystick
^ So get in training for this high- powcf ed
. actioii gaine now
^ It's your service next!
FREEPOST. Bath BA2 4TD. Tel: 022S 116924
Niew Ccnoribon product! in
idd ictjxdir^ to chtif- Cicma
Rwar Kmmn
Fnnco F ' r ,
JiftEilitoi
Pnidu^kini ^nlgrtflf
Oi^rflii Bmwmttr
siiirvyriiit
CMVritNltlfia nfHim
Mm^ CwKfy, i«n Stone, Jo^
Mraofi
CtoncUtiHfi
John idw«rcli
PfffiiM flobetts
MUlOnkr
C133S N«MlfMSIC] L>
GHASH MMBiM ft I
momhly tiv Miwifbid Liy, ■ ^
King Stre«1, Lucllowv, Shroo«Htr»
m Sutecriplions III94 S«20
m Edllwi#r ^Studio QWi StSI
CokHif migJruiiian by Scan
Slydw. W*1l*ce flowd. londm
h } : Prmt<Qd m £nalaricl by Caf Irq^
Wife OfhBl (Membur of the W=«;
DiHributkmbfCOiMa
Ttviitack llo«ct,^flA Dfjiyfefi,
T; "' :ron
A in enQLiiliii ihoukt
DM induded tUKMAinlAfidr;
wi3iiit> 1 2 ift&u«« O T JO poit
kncludfld OutucJii ELrrapv ^
«riwii)^mi#ni in wrilifig.
'COi'MMfl^f WMfiQpv^nf|HthOipl^ Wt
<L«iirKf| umtefU^ to ivium »nrv MT^n»ri
^ ««Ano CftHSlil M#fS^ /
tsfppwi widiiwwl a n t i iflio p ^ unsoJ
it Out £uriimi r■4^ • iid
viitwMolmrvupc' -j^^
2d A GREMUN IN THE WORKS
Roqm *C«»rr viiil* Sh#if ^*ld I o mw iti* i i i «i off afirt^t Iram
Gr«mlin C^f ttphM^ kictud^fl MCWT^ QN THE aUN
6d THF SIAfCLAffl STQfir
Pift 4 looitm At liM T*l«vwDn«rY
74TUEWALLYCLUB
We look M th* rwub and draw ficnn* conduktont
108 GETTtNG TT TAPED
hAtgnfltie MAgazinni for your co<tipOt«f
128 ON me COVER
Jhit% montfi lookt al fhm worfc of BOS WAKEUN, llw man
Iwhknd rrwnv Ociai vovmn
MICRONET:
VouGantJilhtoCftASH
MidiHifll. Our MBX if
Cover Dy Oliver Frey
^
54 CLUMSY COUN COmP
A colour TV ptui kHch ot KP ShifH Id b« MQti ta iMt
MHtartiwik compvthiort w^h « dm«r«i^*
70 WIN A SWCLAIR FLAT
TELEVISION!
Thr«* kKkv wlnn«fi of ifi^ Sindair r«i«jirGh cd«tip wIH
win « tkiv pock vt TV F E
76 CRASH QUIZ
86 THE FIRST ICON DRIVEM
COMPETITtON
ThBY ul^it mMnt toffon*. but CM.SH ind BEYOMiD
fi»v9» 4dl«Wtl»a«l >0^« SHADOW F (RE T tl^im
f IB FRANK BRUNO'S BOXING
mtt tn offering « ^tiphy plut ^ VTXSOOd ModMWl
f2JMM4P>lCMAIUi4RCAD£
ftf>ICN/IVF
by piiyvng ^H« DESIGN OiSKlN virOf^ e&mp. p4ui o«mn
tD¥irin
JEDfTORtAL
plut hidtJiifi to Advwti*vn and progf anfi
d MERELY mANGUAm
Li(«t g«m«i nawiind a (|uick Ioo4i M NODC& OF YESOO
45CR4SHa4CK
Lcxjki kilo lofn* piiw from Jns4i*t
SfiCAASHfOAUAT
TiM BUG BOK h b«Bi"n>nfl lo wdHi. . ,
7TiVfWSIJUPt/r
A Ibfitl roundup for ch« moffth
77 PLA WIWGTTP5
ftob looki at tha moai pnpultr gafnas cautlng proHmiw,
plu« tht Atrium M^hwn GVfKM
d2 CRASH MOTUNEAHO
ADVENTUfS CHART
89 LLOYD mANGRAM'S HALL OF
SUME
Morv l1^■«oofvi frdni ttt* ffun wfM) fiHifls cfM«fi from
aeADVEmuRE ofjetman
Ihm Uttlo cult conEifuat, loonHf- and toisfiiif
92 TECH NICHE
Loola «t LEONARDO (pt 7L fMcTronta vound avntii;,
modAffu a#Kd Dth«r hat d btt«
99A0VEmVRE TRAIL
TKnglMiiox in hiand. D^rak takat tb* fiatvn Of a auli anet ovtf
rossfGWPOsr
Advemuf* ht%>, tip* end l«ntn
TfO CRASH COUflSC
education*! fun hwi RoMtU McdHd
124FROmUNE
The next issue of CRASH wilt be on sale
from 25 JULY. Don't miss it or you'l)
mak« us cry.
CRASH July 1985 5
^ket the Gang!
Herwt
i
■ST EVER MULTI-ROLE ARCADE ADVENTURE
Includes Hit Single on reverse "Everyone's A Wally" performed by Mfke Berry
Spectrum 46 K £9.95
Commodore 64 £9.95
Amstrad CPC 464 £9.95 ^WSSS^^ 44 The Broadway, Bracknell, eerl<s. 0344 427317
THIS TORMENTED
BUSINESS
I was sUiick by reading a phrase
in an edition of ii software trade
paper, k was. ... this tcirmefitdd
Bti si ness of ou rs;' li ret h^r nea! ly
summed up the first sij( months
0f this year in which the pre-
OiristmaB gScKKn merchants
appear to have been vindicaiect.
To the vanish^ or quietly
disappearing softwan^ hauses,
we can now add Bufl-Byt*,
Fantasy and Micromania, the
lattef two cenainlv helped on
the^r way by the coltsf^m of soft-
ware distributor TlMf .
Bug- Byte lookedTike il was ail-
ing for som^ tim6 de$p«to. or in
spite, of rumoMrod tre up deals
with Argus. A shame roalFy. be-
cause i t severs any fmal link willi
Ihe origin a! flowering of Uver
pool pro^raimmfnfl talent I hat
beg 3 n w 1 1 h B Ljg Byti3 and flowed
inio Imdgin?, Software Projects
and many of ihe pfog^amming
houses that ftow exist. Micro
mania had too much stock of
their latest game in Tiger to
withstand the loss of revenue.
The Pf ony i s 1 h al . by a 1 1 acGounta,
Future Pro/eel sold very well,
mostfy through Meniiea with
whom Tiger largely dealt, but
because Tiger ended up owir>g
Menzies money ^n Ihe form of
credit for returned, urisold
lapes, companies like Micro-
mania who should have
received payment did not — (or
Menzies dealt with Tiger and riot
Micromania.
The way in which companies
go bust IS often telling, There
are, of course, very strict legai
rules covering the matter, but
they are often eagy to get
around. Sug-Byta'i receivers in*
formed all (StTOltOrS (including
CRASH} of the situation Micro^
mania's Dominic Wood wrote a
letter to the effect that he wa^
bankrupt — at least you know
where you stand. Fantasy's
demise was less ethicaL For
sevetal wraks nrkanaging
direaor Paul D^rwas
unavailable because he was
'moving house', according to
the ferrule voice answering the
phone. Then the voice was
unavailable — then the phpr^e
was disconnected Paul Oyer
and Fantasy had viniihoo,
l^eaving huge unpaid debts
behind According to one
programmer who Is still owed
his last salary, it was a real
moonlight flil. Like many others,
he has no idea where Paul Oyer
has gon^ to ground. There are
rumours that a new "Fantasy'
aims to rise from the ashes,
probably with thfe rtear
completed Super P^rdmid
game.
I hope not, Paul, 1 really hope
not . . .
FROM BACK
ROOMS TO
BOARDROOMS
There is a prevalent feelinp
amorvg many figures in thts
tormented business that more
software houses will bite the
PftOaRAmS REVIEWED IN THIS ISSUE
NlGtfTS
tor
Anolasoft
lARVQN CASTLE
Addison -Wesiey
ASHKEBONf MitTOisoft
A VIEW TO A KILL
-Etomatk
iATTLEFCMMOWAV
PSS
{BATTLE OP THE BULGE
Lottilormn
BOdED OF THE RINGS
Detta 4
CAULDRON Palsee
SoftWilfPr
QAVATTMES€A$IDE
t>orrr PANIC F^hi^>trd
PUN DAHACH G«rgovi«
Gamm
DVNAMrmoAN
FRANKENSTEM Ir^n
FRENCH U&TENING
COMmeHENSlON
Sottlee
14 GLASS OiiicksiM
21 HELICHOPPER F i - okwrd
THE HELM rirebitc)
104 HERBERT'S OiMNfV
102 RUN M^Vro-Giin
HISTORY MYSTIRY
20 At ^
K^ jTAUigatd
126 LEONARDO Creativtt
Sparks
1 24 MOU NT CHALLENGE
99 QUACKSHOTCfsalive
Sparks
34 ROCK Y HOftftOR SHOW
CPt
no sue SUNK FifUtiird
22 S UPER G RAN Tyn«ioft
SUPERPIPEUNE2
15 Taskset
TiNOCRBOXarafnIm
26 Graphics
24 WOPiDWlSE NUCLEAR
WEAPONS Conflict 8r
1
112
H
n
1D1
\n
u
M
120 j
zz
\2
100
114
101
111
dust this summef, bu! what is
tending to happen is a swaNow-
ing of smaller imiividual
companies into ^rger conglom-
erates. Britons lite to think of
themselves as individuals, so
we ffpwn on this, fee ling (rightly
so al times) thatwe wi^H gel less
value for money from the gaanis,
and that genius dnd taient will
be strangle in favour of con^
formkst marketing policies .
There is nolhing new in this; it
se^ms inevitable that ^\i 'n«w^
industries must st^riin back
tedrooms and move to the
conglomerate boafdroom If an
imfUSTry is worth it. big money
WJH move in. CompetitmrL
mereases, tougher marketing
BfTierges. and the tinder cap rtal-
Iwd pioneer wflers. The
benefits of pfogmmmef s
markefing iheir gofnes through
the larger ^ttware houses
shouldn't be oveHooked
though. The programmer is frM
to concentrate on what he dtom
best whi^e being linked to
suffhcient finnnt^to market the
game well, and at the same time
IS freed from the real headache
of all companies — financial
controls {a euphemism for
gening the sods to pay* -- the
Mafia have one of the most
effect liVe systems, they break
people's knees).
I said that there's nothing nqw
in this — ft hapfienad in rhe
muaicixjsinesa {Bn6 has
happened ^n publishing loo)
with independent J abels being
swallowed by ihe Ijke^of CBS,
EMI andDecca Eventually talent
and/or original^ity '^s sti Hied and
the general public suffer until
rebellious elements in the street
put together an alternative
music. It happened after the
BeaTleis in the 60$ and it
happened again with Punk ^ock
in the 70s. h seems to tie a cycf ic
event, and no doubt it will
happen with theentenainment
software business. There are too
many talented pames designers
afOUnd for this industry to
torment itself to death. All that's
occur rirvQ at the moment is e
cher>Qe of colours. It's down to
us as reviewers and players of
games tu ensure that the
congloma irate software houses
don t get complacent with their
product
Ro^er Kean
ON THE COVER
GREMLIN
I'm afraid that once suin it is
CRASH apology tJmeTThe
artwork greml^n^ have beert at it
again on the last Issue, resulting
in i shameful oddity in our On
The Cover {Screen) feature
about screen designer DwvHI
Thorpe. We incluoed a screen
bas^ on CRASH issue Ts cover
that had nothir^ lo do w^th
David Thorpe, me man who
dfldsmd Ihe CRASH cover
screen is gduaity Graham
Lucas, who came second in the
CRASH/Gremlin Graphioi
flcreen design competition
sofna issues back. What s even
worse, is that during the repro
stage^ the separations were
reversed so the p^du re came out
all Ihe wrong cotours. Oh dear.
The mistake arose because
Messrs Lucas and Thorpe's
screen shots were nil on the
same roll of colour film and
eoiTieof^ in the art dept got
carried away with patriotic zeal
So. apologies to Dav^d Thorpe.
Graham Lucas' picture was to be
used on its own.
ADVERllSEnS' fNOBX
^H
m
A ft F Soflwflftt
115
Gf ecnlin Graphica
42,43
AriotMoft
6«
t9
Le'0Vfid
•3
37,38
B«vond
25,49
Lflftfi
15
CRASH/US GeW
Mlkfo^Gefi
6, 113
OesM SpmeiMl Subs Offet
ftew GenefatkHi
4
52. S3
Ocean
3S,44
CAASH T-shirtsJliimdiw* Sfl
Qurckftitvi
87
|}*talMH
50.51
Rj»m £tocironks
90.11
ilMi9nO«i»gn
47
RofTuntk flolKit
75
tionutk
79
Software Ctty
59
Elite
&Ack jH^A
Software Pro(ec*s
131
iFMMnl
41,89
Ultimate
15
Ff«l
fil
Virgin Games
23
Gargoyle Guti«*
97
Vortw
13
GHsoft
101
US GoM
2.3,127
CRASH JuJy 1985 7
MEREL Y MANGRAIVMEREL Y ff
WELCOME to
rh« coiTip-
uter games
cotumn th-gl
fuTiires on
hJSl about
everylhirig
In fact Vm «j
f4Ml up of writifij the words
'Hopttfully Weil Be Bev tewing
Next Month that fw decW#d to
abbreviate It down to
KWBANM, so M yotJ s«e tlwH
lettsfa — - amt you will — ft ten't
me trying to dear my throat of
Ludlow's damp sif las I write,
the raifi is poyring down, en-
other krveiy summer),
TwtUnq of the weathef , chao^
r^btt a^yt me My already
«mmfied dw%k \%. y^t again
thrHmned by the sudden arr
ivalof ZZAP' &4's adit a rial team .
who have moved up from their
base in Yeovil where the heJI i*
Yeovil anyway 7] and are tHiiJly
grabbing all I he spure power
p^ks and 1922 Herm« type-
writers yoing (and ther^ aren't
that many going, or is dliftt
'wofking V h s quite off putting^
I Qirt ttlfyou, to ba raving aboul
tome great new g^me. only lo
have some smart ••#• gotng
'Oh thai one Basicallyp we've
already done that it on the 04.
and it's not %q amaaaiing, - , , '
Yeehp well .
Anyway, efiough of the toe^l
colour — hoiioiiriatisfiedp once
again Tve manttgad to out-Intro
Robin Candv. {seen rhe Playing
ftps yet? -ftCi Onto the real
■tuff
I gusfis the biggest sadness due
ID schedules an" thatp It our not
beinB aMe to review Noifss of
Yesm by Odin. Odin aren't all
that new, clespita {ippearancai^
since ihey are a relaunched vefs-
ion of Thor {Jack and rhe BtuBn*
st0ik et ^\]. Pre^vtcus Thor games
were characterised by iHeir extr-
am^iy colourful graphics, and
the same is true of Nodes.
e^ecept that it aiso boasts sorr^
great graphics and r^eal hum^
ourous touches, as well a& a vast
K laying area. Snap judgerrmit
ere at CRASH Towers I some
five reviewers f^ghiing to gel at
the joystick} is ihat il could wtell
be a rave CRASH Smash this
issue — tf il had arrived in time
CO gel il all done pfoperfy .
You play (wait for this) the
Right Hon ChartenriBgne Ch^r-
lie FotheringhtmGrunes (we'll
stick to Biglit Charlie) and it
lakes piace on the Moon — okav,
forget the soanario, there's no
room, A series of linked scfcens
repre^eni the Moon's surface
(you know it^s tho Moon be-
cause of the ejcjcellent graphic: of
the Earth hangino in the tw ink
ling starred skyj anii Charlie
runs leaps, bounds and somer
saults (yes — somer^ult^^
along, over the craters and hit I
oeks. Jumping into a crater
drops you below the surface,
into cav^s with pEatfarm blodcs
suspended m space above ihe
floor, which may be several
screens down.
8 CRASH July 1965
nANGRAIVrjERELY MANGRAM
TheFt ^m toacte of wry tar g«. |
very vanM and baai^tifully
animated HMtJet. One ol
Chart le^s jKimt t^jucti^&s is to
find and hopcrfully befriend a
Moon Mole, a craature which it
if stispected. eats the v«ry subs-
tafica of the MoQn itself. Thia
creaiure can be gutded around,
and thus mak^ a c43nvHniefii
iOrt of &&lf-lunn@ling tuto frain
fDr getting fiboui ih@ cavarns.
We'll see whi3t everyone has
t^ say nem monih, but ^rom my
fairly quick g«snc*. I'd say t^*e
characteF griphio^ are imong
the best IVe seen — o^naml^ The
nxdt detailed ^ Charti^. himself m
a shfier delight with hii detef-
mir«j walk, panicked faltt.
siumped resignation and lerm-
{nally detlaieo @nd^ Marvelloos^
r ve had rea son in i n the past ( LM
looks beck — Christmas Special)
to refer to what \ cai^i the sell
copy' trend, a syndrGma whete-
by software iiouses aH have the
san-re sort of idee at the same
[ime, Tba Track & Fteld' arcade
game is a good example of this,
resulting last year in a flood of
a^E^tic simuiatpons. This year's
IhifTies seem lo be a trifle more
violent and f elated, ie bOKing
trrf karate (or martiel artsJ.
Inspired by the arcade original
'Punch Out'r, were aboyt to
tM a battle in the nng between
Bllft»nd Gremlin GrapNcs^ Elite
are marring on fmnk Brufm^s
Boifrnfl (see Iwt issue Merely
MangramI wtiich NWBRNM.
Gremlin Graiphics have just lic-
enced Rocky from Spanish soft-
ware house DJriBmicThe riiame
may be tubjMt to a change if
there ihould piove to be a elash
Cpf i nt t fW t S between ihe game
and the fWnoui film of the same
name. Rocky has a neat control
whfch when used via a joy^ick
rnake^ rt feel quite realistic &oth
games, as you can se^. rely on
very large graphics in black and
white which allow for quite
sophisticated animetion —
rather essential for a game iike
this.
On ihe oriental front we
should soon be seeing a Spec-
trum version of Wsy of the Exp-
toding fist from Melbourne
Hmitt. Thts karate simulation
offirs a wide range of tactics
with etght types ofkick such as
the Jump Kick (ah sol, High ar>d
Mid Kicks I ah so so L Short Jabe,
Sweeps forwards and
backwards I ah so so sol and the
famous Roundhouse, which has
lillle or nothing lo do with Chalk
Fanti in Lortdon but does
Simulate a kind of high speed
engirt turntable effect for which
the Chalk fann Roundhouse
waa Ofif^ famous. Good timing
is essential with all of these
tactics, Aomethirifl for which
British Rail is r>ot so famous-
Thefe are also three types of
Bjnch and two somersaults.
9V of r'je fxpii>ding fist is a
twD-piaver game or one player
^amsl the computer, is expec-
ted to be available about now
and costs (M^.
The Spmnimh contm*^r, BOCHY^ erVton tMtMwhar i*rg#r
re r^ ivhwif inn 0ptiimm
The second contender is
System 3 Software wt>o
brought us £teaf/? StBf fnier-
ceplor, whose game fnter-
n^ftooBl K&rate should also be
ready any day. Woi many details
yet Oil this one as J haven't seen
a preview copy, bui ihe large
characters are animated against
a black background and Mark
Cale savs there will be synth-
esised speech on the game, sim-
ilsr to that used on tfSl
fntemstionai Karate will cost
somewhat less than the other ah
sooffenngsat 05 19.
We should also expect to see
something from Imagine along
similar lines before long, a iic^
enead vetsfon of the Kunami
game Kung fa, and (ah so) a
version of Kamt0k& from US
Gold, fmaglne look like releasing
quite a few sporty type games in
the near future, especially sfter
the licence deal wiih Kunemi.
Among them, 111 p*jt my money
on Tennis, GoM; Rallvmcj IHyp&r
ftsff^h and of course there's Ptng
Piong.
Just before going to press i
heard about a new game from
Vortex. Luke Andrews phoned
up to give ^ few details. It's
called fiighwBY Encounter^ vwit-^
ten of course by Costa Paneyi
and it features a high dnc^te w
view. There's b^sen some time in
between this release and the
last Cydone, during which lime
Costa has been tHJSiSy develop-
ng his style Of 30 even further.
Earth has been invaded by creat-
ures from Outer Space and your
lask is to confront rhem at the
end of the long highway where
ihev Sre hiding The highway is
heavily piiirolled by the aliens'
guardians who have Ml all kinds
of trap^ to preventyou getting to
your desii nation The pTayef fiM
Ti ve diarscters to controL but at
the outset you are in control of
one particular character. Should
the one you donirol be killed,
then you automatically takeover
control t>f one of the other four,
but it is essential to protect the
others because they can be
killed — so they aren't acting as
spare lives' in the usual sense.
Luke's expecting to release
Highway Encounter on IS July
and my incompeteni infomnani
(no names, but he's usually lobe
seen in company v^th a 1M2
Morgan I forgot lo cheek on the
price before Luke rang off.
HWBRNMI (that was me clear-
ing my throat fn sheer disgust —
I can't stand incompetents I
PSS have caused quite a stir
withtheiranti-VYirgame Thestre
Bufope on the 64™ I've no news
yet as to its release on the Spec-
Erum However, Pay I Hutch irr-
sons follow up to Xav/ocjT, The
Covenant is due any day (See
Forum for some graphics on the
characters ! PSS dsscrilie the
game as an arcade adventure
conlainrng State of Ihe Art
graphics, m whpch you take the
role of a futures lie Noah endeav-
ouring to repofHilate his devAS-
taied planet by collecting the
last remaining members of ind-
ividual species -- a sort of ecol-
ogy oanne. H costs C6M ^nti
2 wemmtw Bht^ih^ (He IMifr v t tmtttm fin ^FtANK BffU^tO S SOX WG from Btkm
CRASH July 1385 9
ERELYMANGI
In their bid to lake over the
entrre w^rld. US Gold h^ve
dnnounc^d ihcf siQning ai a deai
with Walt Dl»ii«y Proditetionf to
create oomputef g^mes based
Ofi forthcoming Watt Disney
films, as w^N as » licence for
enisling American ^odwaf^,
Cenainly (he fin&t two games
should be adaptiO^ni from Ois^
riev'^ tvi^ ma>or releases this
yeBf, R&lurn io Oi. foNow up to
the famous musical which star-
red Judy Garland, ^nd Bf^ck
Cauttiron, an adventufe movie
tfue later in the yeer. These two.
plus a game based on the char-
acters m the JurrgHe Book, are
being dovelo|)ed "pindy by US
Gola and Ocean^ On top of thai.
Ihe^e PS the host of famous char-
acters liko Mickey Mouse. Don-
aid Duck and that wery British
tear, Winnie the Pooh, ihe
gan^e« fesylMng are: Mtcksy's
Sfixe Adt^f^tuf^, Winnie ih&
f%oh tn Hundred Atr^ Wood arid
i)onaid Duck 5 fl^iv^^foufii]^. The
games, which are markeied by
ierra-On-Line m the Si ales, will
be available on the 64 and I await
rm^rs atM>ut Che Spectrum oon-
versjofts.
But this is not all. oh no, if
you're aiming to take over the
world, how couFd you possibly
do it wiithOMt Kermil »nd Gonzo?
US Gold haye also signed deals
with Mupptf Prody^kms to
pioduce two Muppet programs.
Kermft's EiBctromc Story M^ker
— a graphics kii lor verv yoyng
kkis, and Th& Gr^m Gonio ™ a
word builder program for 6
years and up. Watch out Rosetta
McCleod!
Backtracking slightly to Gfem-
hn Graphics (w*?H covered m this
monih 5 fealure profilelH *
should just mention that along
with Rocky, Hm company has
also licenced a ncond gan^
from Dinajnic oalled Prcjfen-
&fmfi, which features a Jivety
character eicpluring the tombs o1
Abu Simlxil (Egypt you know,
mf Lloyd Mengram's World
Atlas and Genefal traveling
Companion Guide! It has a
graphical similanty to Quick-
siiva's fred, but is m fact an estr-
efnely tough piatform-ctim-
maze aame that relies on the
K layers timing skitls vo avoid
emg ripped or drjpp^ to
death WOBRNM (We'M Definite-
ly Be Reviewing Next Mom hi
Silvefsoft have be^n father
Quiet of late, but the Loncton-
based software house *s gefUng
ready io make some noise
again. Like Gremlin Graph ircs,
Ifiey have been interested in
some of the oames coming out
Of Spain's Dinamic They are
kicking off with the release of
two related games, which incW-
entally precede Prof^nrnfon. The
first IS called Siffftj^ioan^. which
stars the intrepid Prcifessor
Indiana Smith vivho travels the
eMOtic parts of the world dig-
ging. Qfubbing. discovering and
Beneratly getting into archaeo»
>gi€al trouble. Part twOr B^t&
i./£a will follow when the
Spani sh / Engl ish translations
are conipjeted. S&tmsi&om
costs f6.95 and Bab^ 1/Aa will be
RrebJrd are busy getting new
material together for iheir Gold
range — I don t knew how much
of this we'll see. but ihey teH us
some 30 programs are in devel-
opment and they're always
tnterested in mor§, so if there
are any programmers out there
wfth some solid gold ideas
(don't worry, the jokes get
worse) get in touch wiih Firebifd
immedi^ately. John Cain, who
wrote the CHASH- smashed
Sooty i% at work on a name in the
l$le of Man due for release in
Septemtser and which sounds
like it's based on problems in the
Isle of Man. Firebird weren't
intending (o rekjase any more
Silver range games until latef in
the year, out nave come up weth
something called Cyfu, whi^ch
they thought was so mega-fa bit
was worth putting out straight
away A copy is dataposttr>g its
way to me at this very minute —
more neirt month.
Sohwafe Projects promised us
a provnjw of J&t Set Wfhy W. bm it
hasn't turned up yet. However
the Amstrad vefsion is suppos-
ed to be identical, tt's set in
exactly the same mansion as the
last one, but by some magic
method an extra 40 odd rocjms
have been added in and around
the previous M There don't
appear to be any big surprises in
it except for the incorporation of
ail those hoaxes and iokses that
JSW atlracted to itself. The 64
version allows you lo play in any
room you wish to, by I won't
allow you to leave that room -—
an attempt to stop all the pokes
from getting out of hand.
Whether ih is is t nje on t he Spec -
trum version I don't know yeL
Jet Si?i Wtify // has not been writ-
ten by Mitthsw Smith.
Vm sure I must already have run
out of space and if 1 taVe up too
much RC starts compl^aimng
(and dash ed has already cut his
section down siightly this month
at a punishment lor making a
thing unimy last month by leav-
ing out a DATA line in a poke —
tee heel, so rd ijetter get going
on the otd bike, back home. Sui
one last interesting point I've
lust noticed; if you use Derek
Brewster's adventure tips
(^ing system and apply it lo
HWBifNM. you get IVAQMN
Fab. hey?
MERELY \1M
At A NEWSAGENT
NEAR YOUR
FRIEND
ZZAP! 64 is monthly and costs 95p
'ZZARI 64 ' & 'CltASH'an both N9wsfi9ld Publication*
10 CRASH Ju(y 1985
\HELI-
CHOPPER
Producer: Firebird
Memory required: 4SK
RetaH price: £2.50
Lar>gyage; machine <^Kle
Author: Tony Beckwrth
Apart horti th« ftyifig ducte. th«e
rising (#tha( bubbl&a, rha murcf'
erou^ disks and th« borribs iher«
is little diHerenra jMtwean youf
role in this game ind thai under^
liken by tnoM brave chaps ot
tlie Air-sea- rescue eervvce. Your
mission is simfsh/ to chunter
around ihe scroofi m your tittle
bfttichopper arid rescue the
Clon«^ stuck on th« other side of
the swamp. In the meantime the
er#atur&s in the swamp below
are anackir^g you with a wide
variety Of woaponry, and whrle
your chopper is armed, it oan
ofity destroy objiecfs thai are
immediately t»elow it.
The reiscL^e of clones is etfftc-
led by ftying to one side ot the
swamp an o waiting while hej'
she.' it climbs on bo^rdp and then
ytHj deposii your paseeitger
ufely on the other s^irde. A sort of
tfehfte to be pkked up TM£f\f €fo
M operation.
While llv»i^ you rnust breve
the objects bulling around all of
which ere bent on your de$i ruct-
ion. SubseqiienL screens offer
rhe same terrai/i but with even
moie raalies to counter, Some
of the icreeni have an aeria]
ffiaxe for y^^i to negotiate^
toudiing any of its con-tponent
fians (the third screen's maze is
made up of what appear to be
hficks with eyes) will resuit in
the desirtjcliqn of your IHring
machine.
Poincs are awarded for ^hom-
ing the aerial greeblies, the
i^urnber of points will oddly
eriough, depend on their cc^hlour.
Po i nis a r & ftot awa rdsd f o r I tans-
pcrting the clones but you will
neve to move them all before
yoy are a llovwed to go to the next
screen.
CRmasM
m When I hrst played Hufi-
chopper I thought it was Firebird
flop Dtrl now, about rwo hours
later, i |ust can't put it down, The
graphics are smsH neat and well
animated, they remind mi? of
some or Ultimate's early games.
There it hBfdly any sound but
what littt^ there its, is edequaie. I
think the hme limil w«e a litfle
too lorig on son^ie screens be^
cause they where e little too
eray to complete One feeture
that really annoyed me was the
keYdefir>e option, if you weren't
quick enough then you could
end up with all o1 the controls on
one side While He^chopperw^^
a very playable game it wasn*t
m addictive as 1 had hoped/
• "Helichopper' part of fire-
^ifd's Sifv^r Rarngff, ts pfBfiY
good v^iue af f2.99, Thi^ gr^ph-
fCS 3fe sff^OOlh^ 0nii ihe gsme is
Si f/rsf fun ro pfay, but n oea^me
f&ss exatrng themor^ youpfBy il
becBuse of its hmtf^iiorts snd
reper/rive natum. Cheap smf
chi^rfu/\ issuer than a\^mg0
end for rAe mauw not s bStf
desr
# 'Apert from a fatal misunder-
standing when I first started
playing the game, which led to
me perking me helicopter on top
of the elect ric fence (whidi
meant that the little clones
wouldn't come out to play end I
couldn't do anythingK I soon goi
to grips with Hefknoppeewhich
is really ouim jolly. Vour heli-
copter whizzes found quite
merrily, bouncing off the top of
the sky. and the various nasti^
which include homrng kiHer
ducks make ir quite Jt challenge
to ptay. Once I'd stopped bonne-
(n9 the helicopter fn frustration
on the head of unco-operative
clones, end wofted out that you
h&d to Fand by the electric fence
er^ wait for it to disappear
Vtmikina to T/»» hmlkiopfr fn HEUCHOPPCft. whtfth^wm.
efrcims an *vil dueh ,
before collecting a clone, I was
well away. Hours of tun '
COMMENTS
Control keys: definable
Joystick: ^ny
KeYboerd play: pood
Use of colour: sample but clear
Graphics: average
Sound: fair
Skill levete: 5
Livet:4
Scf««fisiZ3
General rating: pretty average
garne
Use of computer 65%
Graphics 71%
PlayabJIity 75%
Gettmg started 70%
Addictive qualities 78%
Value for money 80%
Overall 67%
UNBELIEVABLE I
MAiCE THE MOST OF yOUR MrCROOmVE
wrrH
INTEFIFIVCE ID
THE IMPOSSJBL£ HAS OEiN DONB
T4^i, I r % Tn jT rfm iwiiaitli ^ w'w pttufjhct^ Mm tr^n^lei siiwry pnqirmtm avaHatalv d to n^io6t rs.r Vvf
on* capable of kxKlrigi ^ind it*m^ # BASC ptopr^m tmn ffnynlfr tmmlff Mwkwmrd progr^rm m tTwiod ■
lutt loolc *4 tli«i* f *jitur«s * * m
toffilcrcMlrlv*,
W*ry. v«ry. ^asy taui«-. (IfCllvtcjin
# AJJ progrjinn reLOAD4r>{j |t||^ oncc
tr#nif erred.
prdigrAfn^ | i« wd at M i^Fveri , J
W ttmm^mt can Ih KtualMi Jrt jmy »»9«
ml l&wi ng "e uitofnl scd ' vvriloni .
# Will AllW MV4- to l«F>«- |iMof iri#i ip#«d
#Pro^fa0it win rclrOAp |nd«^«fi^vftlly
iMrlwiftttffjK* .
IF TOU HAVE A MICIIOQiYlVt TOU MUST HAVE INTCff FACE III
Or^LY £19.95 Inc. PAP
Ail ^iiiHi Pt-ilH^^ rtr- ^f^ V*T TP-n4 ihr^irf
MICRO CENTfie MICRO CENTRE
CRASH July IdSS 11
ssic^
THE
ROCKY
HORROR
SHOW
PrcMfyoer: CRL
Memory required: 48K
Retail price: £8.95
Language: machine code
'Ttie Rockv Horror Show' w^t i
cult ^lage play arid an #v«ii
bigger cult fi^rn iri tha States,
v^here rii9ht after night for years,
the same audience would sir in
th^ theatre repeating (he lines in
una son with ttW »CtOr$. dr^$$ecl
in the same type of cJothing —
game actually dCN&s go a long
way in rac reatirig the atmoii-
phere and sense of madness,
which is Co ks credit.
If you are orw of the fast
people (eft on earth who knows
nothing of the 'Rocky Horror
Show'p film or stage play, then
you might be forgiven for not
knowing what is going on.
Good, middle class Americari
yoyngslers, Janet and Srad,
through some mechanical
defect in their car. end up in this
weird hou$e for the n^ght and
one of ih^m aeii turned to alone
— well, Itll do fbr a start,
t!'s entirely up to you whether
It's Brad or Janet who gets
stoned by the wicked Dr
Frank^n'Furler and his dreaded
Medusa maehir>e. bul clearly the
least SDlfd of the pair nrmst do
the rescuir^. The task ahead is
simple; guide The rescuer
arOurKt the house and find the
pieces of the Oe^Mtdusa and put
It back togethern tien you can
wipe rtiat rather stoney smile
from your partfier's face and mn
like blaies. Of coyne finding the
piecM isn't a piece of rock cake,
you need to look for them and
tf^ means opening doors and
that meens Brirtng keys ~ the
right keys. And while you are
lurching around this rather attr-
active period dwelling you are
going to be chased by quite a
Few people who would rather
you didn't and they have some
pretty mean ways of expressing
their prefirenceSp like killing
you. If you are lucky something
might just walk up to you and
say sornething siliy like 1 didn't
like my TedC^f or Nf s jusl a
jump to the left. . . ■ These rem^
arks seem move Brad and Janet
into a state of total cortfusion
(know how th*3y fpoU and eifter a
few more from the rrght sort of
person that confysion moves up
a grade, to total death
The De- Medusa is made up of
fifteen operate hits which must
be coUected pi^e by piece and
deposited m the chamber next
lo your stiff fnend. At ihe start of
12 CRASH July 1985
each game yqy find that iht
characters and the vita) pieces
have all been left in random loc-
ations around the house. While
there are fewer than fifteen
rcmms yvithin the hoi^se. some
rooms have miare than a mere
lock to gel past, the worst being
a strange electric beam. The
beam removes your one and
only Ufe if you get too ctose ^— it
can be turned off but it's a biit
tricicy Your other problems
move around on their Own. they
are the characters of the play
and each one of them will have a
fasting effect on you The Sutfer
(ftiff RaffL for example, js nuts,
he wanders lound all day lor^
complaining that nobody loves
him while at the same time he is
trying to zap you^ One of the
girls, Columbia, simply straps
you naked when you bump into
her. Eddie is a chap/'thing who is
partiojFariy unpleasant. He was
one of Frank's Failed exper-
iments. Fortunately he spends
most of his time in the freezer,
unfortunaiely the f reenter
doesn't work that weH, the
therrrK>meter at ihe base of the
screen lets you know when he is
thawing out.
Oh one last point, the whole
house is a space ship, yes it is
difficult io believe hut there you
are. From your arrival you have
99 time periods (that's not as
long as It soundili to rescue your
mate and a run for it otherwise
t)y then, you see, Frank wiN have
grown tired of your feeble
efforts arid teft for home. Appar-
ently Frank is th^ gyy from outer
space and he wears the wrong
crothes. well that seems to est-
pfainitall
CRtTICISM
• On (hi? whole this is a very
appealing game to play< the
backdrop of the house is great,
the animation is superb, I partic-
ular ly admired the manner [n
which the characters moved
around of their own free will,
and around objects. The way the
screen changes from one room
to the next is very smart. Bul
something has come out of all of
this cleverness, bugs, I'm sure of
it. On two occasions when I died
and sent Janet back she appear-
ed at the starring posiiion, ihe
hall, txjt in the hall was the ^ift
f rorn the other end of the house
and one of the etecfric beams
from the floor above Well t>eing
the adventurous son l got m the
lift, guess whet? it went OOWM
to the floor on which I got in it.
Other annoying things tended to
happen. The motorcyclisi could
be seen momentarify ^s part of
the from door, he would appur
again, just for a flash, in the din-
ing room. This business about
the clothes I thought one of the
characters was meant to steal
them yet you csn be quite happ-
ily wandering across a room and
woomph — you re Stark staring
naked. The electric t>&ams are
tricky yes. but more often than
Himn'i mmmf hmvmm ' ig^^t^ timv ^ in th» g ^m with frmnkm
huff t>n Hit biko. %BmiT:hiii^f<0rT%ddY
not you can get killed when they
aie not on and that makes it a tot
more than just tricky. Very nice
game shame about the bugs '
• 'Unfortunaiefy due ra my nol
b^i&g sbfe lo r^cerve ch^nr^ei 4 1
missed the "Rocky Horror
ShQw\ i assume that ifte g$me
fe/tows th^ same theme But m
&iiy case its a good g^ime. CRL
h&kf6 usmf some nice graphics, /
foi/nd the coifecrmgaf bits a
ttf fe r&peUtive affer a whtJe. The
hero sprites went mto some
weird dar^e routmes on occas-
ions, f mgr&t not being abfe to
understand fhe point of the
whacky conversations htft even
so a pfayabfe game bul not that
addictfve. '
• It's about time CPU prodt^ced
some decent software, espec-
ially now they've gon^ public.
well maybe The JRocky Horror
Show IS a new leaf. The tdea of
the game (gertirvg the £>e-
Medusa machine pans and put
ting them ail together) is ouite
simpEe really, arthough a little
long -winded. Some puzzles are
a tittle tricky to solve ai first but
become iapparent enough as
you progress through thegame^
The graphics are of high quality,
detailed and there ere no attrith
ute clashes between ihe moving
characters and the back-
grounds It looks as though lots
of people are starting to copy
Gargoyle s Tir ffa Nog style.
After playing the first few
games, I noticed that there is no
score — a little bit off-putting
t^ecatiaeyou don't l^now how far
you have got Through the game.
Overall quite a playable game
and definitely the best CRL have
produced, and hopefuHy not the
la^l i don"! think it will take too
Jong to solve once you've got
going.'
COMMETilS
C<mtrol keys: A/Z up/down, N/
M left/right. Space to fire
Joyittek: Kemp^on, Sinclair
and Protek
Keyboard play^ fine
Use of colour: a bit one tone but
avoids dashes
Gnphtea: very effective, despite
some oddities
Sound: pleasant effects
Skill Ieve4s:t
Lrve«: t
Screens: about 14
General rating: an exciting and
different game with adventure
elements.
U$« of computer 77%
Graphics 85%
Plavabilitv 78%
Getting started 78%
Ad d M f V e q ua I ities 70%
Value for monev 70%
Overall
79%
^
VMi}
J
i •
rni?
T
1
1
^^^
1
i
Approaching fast...
brajn.blqwing graphtcs.,. mega-blasting power.,. fast-actton playability.
^iighway encounter^..a totally new dirfcton from vortex.
once you're on il. .there's no turning back.
HIGHWAY ENCOUNTER FOR SPECTRUM 48KS7.9S
voiTix soFrwAti ii^in\ timite vditix houii. h. Kansas avinui. ofr soufi* lANtitwoaiMr ioad. MfOU tm lei-
ma^
TALES OF
THE
ARABIAN
NIGHTS
Producer: Interceptor
Software
Memory required: 48K
Retail price: £5 SO
Language: machine code
Author: i Gray and athers
This game Irrst appeared some-
t^me befor^^ Christmas on the
CornsfTM^dom 64 and fieneially
receive favourable re^&ws
DortH t» <lec8fv©d into Ihink*
ing thai Sultan Salad in h some
form of cold and healthy crinkly
gfeen meal serv^ with dried
fruit- He ts in fact a very unsav-
Qury chsracter from the- Tnies of
theAratisn Mg/iis *ho practis-
ed the same nasty hcibit^ as the
blach widow spldf^r onty wiih tha
roles reversed — asa resuft, the
Sultan's brides last a shon time'
Prince Jmfahifs stsier has Ijeen
seized by the Sultan and is taken
ia Bagdad. Il's up to you to h«Cp
him rescue the girl
The journey to Bagdad bmins
aboaro one of the Sultan's snips
where you must collect, in order,
lh€ golden jugs each bearing
one of the letters m the word A-
R-A-B4-A-N. As yOu ^c^mper
about the rigginp a muUitude ol
nasty monsters from above and
below the water attack you.
From the ship it's up tiver by
raft to a gr^al cav^rri where yoy
encounter A^ Kh&mi^ed and his
dreadfy] geni^. While yoiire in
the csvem perhaps you could
just have a quick 109 round and
put the iugs in order then you
can move on ■ to ihe desen. The
desert scene, tike I he nvei. is to
be noted for its iack of jugs, it's
Bisl you against the nastiea.
ext slopp the City gates, but
mind Ou! fof the arrows and
boulders as you sori out those
jugs. Among the platforms of
the next scene, the garden , you
f^nd some more polden jugs and
this time the arrows are small fry
connpared to the na&lie genies.
At last the Palace; more golden
jugs but don't forget to duett end
weave as you sort ihem out.
Afier the Palace you pick up
Anjtca and with her in tow you're
only 3 magic carpet's flight from
home, just mind out for the arr-
ows and those nasty birds.
CRITfCISM
• AHer admiring the rather
'flash' casstirtte ca$e I was really
looking forward totakmgon The
Taf&s of The Afstfan Ntghts. but
T4 CRASH July 1985
when I started wow was I bored 1
One of the first things I realised
on the ship scene was that once
at the top of a rnafit you could
not go ctown, the instrui:rtions
gave no indic^^on of this. The
graphics are reasonable and
after you have passed «he first
screen ibe game xlevelops a
little. The eotind could hav^e
been a great deal batter, » few
measly bleeps as you coNect a
jug but at teast one is piven the
option to swil<^ the sound off.
This appears to present the
Earne ss good va^ue for £5 50
ut Tm not so sure.'
• 'Atof f fre workt*$ mosi cfi^^f&fi-
ging sfCBde jama ftiis. in fact if
you y&if CitiJ Spetf Aratisn yfOu
shoiiidhave rto troubfe r^stmng
Amtra and then s^& cart sofi out
the wr&tchBd jugs/
• Ar^bfsn Nfghts has to be one
of the most bug-ridden gamres !
have ever played, tt has a demo
mode that do»n't go away. 1
had to break into it to actually
play the ^ame, and once you do
Bet into It you realiy have to try
ard to avoid the bugs. I only
saw the first screen because
avoiding one of the nasties
nn^eans you have to walk off the
edge or the shup and then you
fall in to the sea and disappear
under the waves only to re-
appear at the lop of the screen
falling back into thiei sea. Thin
continues, to loop Fn finitely until
you pull the plug as there isn't a
abort option. This game has
Jiardly any sound andiairiy lerky
graphics that ere painful on ihe
eyes
commENTS
Control tteys: Q/Aup/dOwn.
N M leh /right, SS tO jump
Joystick: K^mpstOn or Prutek
Keyboard play; narrow
selDCtian q\ keys but otherwise
OK
Use of colour : pretty gocMJ
Graphics: above average
Sound . great when you lurn M
off
Skin levels: 1
Lives: S
-i.e^ si
imiiiPMi^j
^^^^^^H^l^^^^^^^r' * ■^^^^^^^^^P*'*^ ^^^^^T^^^^^^^^^^^
«
tugrn i«wm to Im m pmtmnnM t*« fc m JkMABUUi
Screens: e
General rating: slightly better
than average.
Use of computer; 51%
Graphics 55%
Playability
GettJnp started
Addictive qualrtits
Value for money
Over all
46%
65%
43%
55%
S6%
TAU5 Of Tm
1
WRCfPTOft
i i
48K SINCLAIR ZX SPECTRUN
ffia
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L
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ALICM 8 ', "KMIGHTLORC", "UNDERWURIDE" and "SABRE WUir' rccommciwlcd retail
price £9.95 inc VAT. Available from W.I1.SI1iTt1S. BOOTS, J.PlEnZIES, WOOUVORTttS
and all good software retail outlets. Also available from
ULTIHATC play the GAEIE, The Green, Ashby-de la Zouch, Uicestershire LE6 5JU
(r«fP ai€ included) Teh 0530 411465
•A.C-H
7!(\<r'-
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1
tin
1
i
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1
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DUN
DARACH
Prodiiosr: Owiiovlt
Games
Memory required: MK
Retail price: £9.95
language: ttwchine odd«
Aythors: Greg Follis and
Roy Carter
Tlifl hflTO ii blCki Wfl Wff9 Tfrfl
iniriKkicod Co th# ^^htncteri
high Cui:fiyRa^iirt tfm grnift in fir
Ato Nog, now he retymt In thii
wk f«m«^ Ay^ D»mch, Thi»
ttmo mar^ is a v»ry subtio diffor-
ifioe tMtMrew CuchylAinn a»
iMn In Tir Ns Nog ^nd CejcKm-
lainn in Dan C^mch, tm ii n live I
No h« hain't baen relncarnfftBsJ
far rminiting tha Seal Of Cefym^
Ihii adventurii ia. wt in the sartv
yaara bafore Tir /V# Nog ,
Following a bkiCMfy and pokit^
lata battla agaimt tha Conachla^
In wtikh Khe Amhaifi a prince of
the Conachta, had baan killed.
CMhtilllnn the Gfaat wa mtur-
ning hgrrw wif^ hia faithful
diariotmr. Loag.
Towards tjtm and of iha aac-
ond diiry ihay stoppad at a way-
aide inii« liiving Hi® dwriol
baaida a ftranpsie bori« drawn
carrtaga. While thay waited loi
food iriay were approached by
Sfear. a atrj kingly beautiful girL
9ha (o*d th^m that sha waa the
owner of tha ^ranga dnariot and
that aha rmui^ed Maiaianca to
mi^d a broken axle. Loag. un-
njrprisingtVp leapt !o M«iirt har
ana fefl the inn with Sl^r.
After a while Cudiulainn vm-
lured out&ide, but to hit aaton^
(ahmani thara was no aign of
eiiher Loeg or Skar. Initaacf o>ne
of tim protrd fK^mifi thai pulled
Iha cfiariot lay alairi. Of the Oak
carriage, thoie wm only a cicyd
of disappeafi ng dust end on the
wind a him of ghoitly glrlWi
laughier.
Sfcar was, ii ssiiHnecl,. a Sorcer^
a» and a lily of Ihe Connachi-
man, and she had ^izad Loag in
ralrrbution for the Prinoetlng's
daath. and had taken him. body
md aoiiL to the aacrat cily of
16 CRASH July 1985
«^ tei*
\Kll
MSl
- fc, ta^ "**■ *■ 1^'
L k* -r "M b •-■ ♦ » "fc^ ^
il )@l
O i I. L
o Ld n
So the scene la aet amj you as
Cuchulainn mui^t taek out tfia
whiereabouts and reacua Loeg
from Skar On tt>a way to achiev-
ing this yoy must oompiefe iev-
eial sub quests such at finding a
particular gift for aofn^one in
return for arnithar ab|eci which
wil t prove uaafy I in yo u r quest.
The city of Dam D&rmh is i|jHi
into several pa^^ wh4<h afl have
their own dharaetefiistic^^ the
p4ea«yre ar«a tiia ^mblrng
houiafl and the finama area has
bania. Within each area tfw
atraats all have their own names
end ail the doora are numbefed,
which makes mapping and nav-
igallon easier Doors can be ent-
ered by •ti^d^^^ in front of them
and pressing enter , the scene
then cun to the interior of the
room. The reverse ia Irue thould
you wiah m exit a room.
The main diffarefioe between
Tir Ns Nog and Dun Dmrach is
interactiOfi. In Tir Nm Nog you
rareh^ neacfed to interact with
the other chafacieri, byt inief-
action playt an jinponant peri in
Dun D&m€H. There are two baaic
forms of interaction — tradinig
w!«h shopkeepers end brokers,
arHl trying to prize bits of infotm^
ation out of the mam character^.
Trading with shopkeepers h
very simpte. On entering a ahop
a mesaage is displayed at the
X?r the screen wh^h te II s you
t goods the shopkaapaf
aallt or buys and at what pfica. If
you are buying tomethtng then
you pick up tha object and offer
the shopkeapar mor^ey If you
have tTKHign money then the
shopkeeper says 'tnank yoM'
and the goods ere youfs. Il, on
the other hand, you don^i have
enough money you can alwa>^
try ttealing the goods. This is
lawn
done tiy pickirtg up the object
ar>d watkpno out of ttie shop with
ii Some ofthe m^re expensive
goods, tike the thieves' Itpence
cannot ba itoii^ and tf you try to
steal them rhe door locks until
you have erthet paid for tha
goods or put ihem beck.
Someiime^ you are In the pos-
ition where you have some
goods which another shop^
keepeF wishes to purchase. Just
offer the shopkeeper the goods
and he will give you money in
retum. Of course instead of buy-
ing and eeliirig at a profit you
oould always steal wme gooda
and sell them to another shop
Ikaaper for huge profit. Should
iRyoe« a sod of local bobby, catch
you in posseselon of some
ttolefi goodi then all your
mofvey p unlass you heve banked
some of it; erKl all the pf^iesasa-
ions you are ceirying will be
taken.
Communicatkig w^h Iha ctiar-
acters thst roam ttie straate ia
slightty hardei. Firat of all you
must find out <^iat each charac-
ter wants, whjfch sends you on a
3
IrS'l'I £
iiifi^^:
1_«Mj
sub-quMt ID find xhB object
Ones fioynd you you can <rHof
*ho otHfiCl to i chBf«cttr who
may giv^ you something in
ratu m . Whi 1^ wa! ki ng the fff raets
ydu muit bpwara of the loca^
pick^pockata who wj{( gtatfly
tika y<Hjf moriey and many o*
your flooda ahould you h«pp^
10 bump into tham, yn.l«>is you
ira a memis&r of tha T^iiavai
GuHd of course. All logfirthar
thara ace ten rnain chara^^ra to
knteract vyJih am) yoo muat gat to
know aach ona'i personal likes
and dislikes.
At well as the shOfMt and the
brokers there era Mverel other
diHafent types of room. Thsfe
are the banfcers, deposit rooms,
portals, gamiriing housasp
magk rooms erhd gullariet. Hie
banl[ is a good hor^esi way of
makinrq money af a steady rata.
The minimum deposit ri 1000
jridi (the local ajrrerircy) and the
intefttst rata is 1% per day. Tha
daya are calculated by the
torches !hat appear on the walls,
niflht when they are on and day
whan off. This onty applies
vyhen outside a building, inside
iha lorehes are permanently on.
While vout mof^ is in the iiank
it is safe from ail the other char-
acters.
D^iosrt rooms ar^, n the
FiBfne Buggests, rooms whefe
you can deposit Qoods, for a fee
of €pyrs«. You jusi enter the
room and drop ttw obied on the
t^bfe and a Im is dedudad as
you leave.
In Til Nb Nqq ttiere wate a set
of rooms whicn would tTanaport
you to other parts of the land.
The iarr« pdndpie has been
imptamemad in Diin OBmch
except on nxwt of thejpoftals
you nave to pay a fea This is a
quick and easy way to travel
Ibcftjt the city should you be in
hurrfi
Gambtjni} h<3usas are a quick
and easy way of making money
or lc:MJng it I On one of th^ walls
is a set of ^wo dice. Thes^ spin
around and after a whil# stop to
show two numbers. The game is
plaryed by placing a bat on either
the A or B table. Each table has
its own n u mbe rs and odds and if
the sum of the dice adc^ up to a
number on one of the lables you
hav« either wcki or lost. This ki
ItsaK provides an enjoyaMe alt^
amative to all the walking aboui
and trading.
Magic rooms tend to give you
n^essAffet wlitdt am clues rf you
buy spells from there. Also scat-
tered throughout the city are
roonrts which are called HsiE- fol-
lowed by another r^eme. 14 yon
take a shield with the same
name and place it on the tabfa in
the room then a picture in the
loom changes to another
symbol which gives you a ciun.
The galieriet ocintain pictures
of objects ^r just pjciures of
things connected with objects, If
you nave pot one of the objects
connect eo with a picture then
drop it on the neart^y table and a
tick will appear on the picture.
Here the Gargoyle tensa of
humour is be«t disPl«yed. as it
was in Tir Ns Nog — remembir
the N and egg (the connecttoti
bejr^ N'i lay eggsl this makes
working out some of the dues
very hard, but if all else fails you
could always iry trial and effor.
On completing a gallery you am
given a new object or a due
abou t how to do somet h i ng e ise
The screen is a bit smaller
than that used in Tie fiia Nog but
non« of the detaH has been loet
the upper and lower parts being
uB«d to displBy messages and
ob}eci£ carrSeo etc. The larrw
'camera view' technique ihat
wai used in TirNs Nog has bmn
uMd in Dun C^rach whkti
means it m pcssibie to ge, views
of both sides of a street, this can
also help you avoid other char-
acters such as the pickpockets.
Cuchulejnn is posit iorred m the
centre of ttte nreen and the
streets scroll smoothly as he
walks. The oitier main cher-
act4H^ ae repiesented by orw
bask male ar^ fsmsle cmrvp-
ler. When a ehaniaer betides
Cuchylainn is on screen (aitoept
shopkeepers end broken) (hen
their name is displayed at ttie
bottom of the screen and a «3l-
oured sQuare follows them with
their initial in it. This m«ans
characterm can easily be
idenlifi(i»d e$pBi;la1ly when there
are Mveral on screen.
As you can see Dan Dsf^ch
relies heavily on inlerection with
other chera^ier^ ar>d finance.
Don't let this fool you into ihfnk-
ing thai all the types of pf obiem$
experienced in tirNa Nog have
vanished, you still have to work
mjt various puzzhis. Dun Darwch
ifiould prove tricky to solve for a
couple of months because Ihe
game is so compleK. \i corriea
supplied in a tevish bo>( com-
plete with B detailed booktet and
a rough map of the cHy.
CRITICISM
• *Oti no! Pleeae not eaainf I ve
only iiM completed r^> Na Nog
end I thought I deserved a wwTl
earned rest But alas I tiave been
forced to roam the streets of fiw/f
t3arm:h and i ry to work out s li the
nasty problems tf^t Greg Foltis
has inoiight up for us, which will
no doubt mean mo^ s)«epleas
nights, I don't think t> can stand It
any longer I The graphics are as
good as ihose m T^r Na Afa^, if
not better, and the animation
teaves nothing to be desired.
Fofiunately there are no natty
horrible Sidhe to contend wfih
kiil chara^ciefS the same sire as
Cuchutair^n which, fortunately*
don't kill you. I didn't think it was
really possible to improve on Tir
Na N&g but somehow Garn^r^
have pulled It off. Co four is used
well with no attribute problen^,
evw when charaaeri walk
across each other. Overall a sup-
erb game th^t should fceep you
ftluM to your TV sets through-
mrt tt%e summer (and tuturrtn,
winter and spring) . Definitely a
firong contender for game of
theyitarr
• 'Cuchulamn £^€ Great is off on
his fra¥&ts amm in ih/s apk
ganw fmm Gai^oy/e Gamai. I
was amaxad by ihe sheer quaffty
of itm gfaphk^ wMch am
amongst the b^r I have evei-
CRASH July 1985 17
D*U-N
D.A*R«A*C>H
iMn/ Th0 Animation is fantsstic
Bnd nc^w ihat ihem are mom
charEctsf^ in f/w gsme it r¥m&ns
fl is e/w ^/ ihe tmsl faoii/rff
gsm^ around Th^ ffam^ i$ a bti
mrct (Q get if^to but on€& you
start gwtfmff scmewhem you
wiif fov0 it t fpiinti f/i# ganm
mtaiiy addfcfi¥a a/id ytrarfy
ptAyBbte, Omrm/t a frufy farit^
astfc ffarna that deserves (o be a
huge hit m fact /'m pretty ^ure
that it Mii be a Mr
• *lhe long amWX^ Mquel Cq
Tie Na Nog has el last arrived
and it was osfteiniy worth ih^
wait ti myst hjsve been hafd to
syrpns the sraphics in Tir Na
Nog byt Gargoyle have done it,
just lex>k at the other characlsrs,
thne rats and I he lorch^ and you
wiH see whai i mean, Sound ifln't
up io much |ust tbd odd spot
aned but yoij t«nd to g«t &o en-
grMsed \n the came itseKf rhai
you don't ca r« what the sound is
like. Ae¥iith TifNaNoffthmmem
no ettf ibute |>roblefn» which is
surprising beceose there are
more then one colour is teing
laed on scfeen #t a time. The
edvwiEyre element is a bit cough
to gtt into tiut you can a 1 wa ys go
Qambting of just stealing goods
and selling them a! a huge profit,
a bit risky but worth it The save
Kame facility is oris of the best I
ave ever used and it is very
quick and ralMto, Horn Gar-
Boyle packed to much into 4eK I
wilt never Junow, there is pm so
much going on thiot it is unbeE-
ieval>le, if you liked Ttf Na Nog
lor oven if you didn't) you wiTi
love OufTf tJarech. EKceHeni
value for money and a mus! for
any respectable Spectrum
owner. Terrific — fust buy tiV
miiff^
€OIVIMEI\ITS
Gwttml heyt: Lrtt/Right
alteniate keys from Z to S ymbol
shift, change cameraview A to
L enter a dCM>r ETfTEn^ pick up/
drop alternate kay^ on tm third
row Q to P. seleet object 2 3 7 S i,
offer obieci the ft>ur eomar keys
JoystkSf only proj^rammabEQ
Keyboard play^ qiiitP a few k«y$
but easy to use and responsive
Ueenf eolQw: exoellent, no
attfrbute prDblemi
Graphics: unbelievable
animation and stunning
backgrounds
Sound: limited spot effects
Uve«: Just the one, bui you cant
die, you can on^ t^ robbed and
taken In by confidence tricks
tcraeni: scrolllno Greets ptue
over 100 rooms and doofs
Ganerat ratings an ^xceilent
value lof money game whicti
has a lol of scope coupled with
brilliant scenario and graphics.
Tru ly a megagame.
Use of computer;
Graphics
Playabilitv
Getting started
Addictive qualKies
Value for money
Overall
B5%
36%
89%
91%
97%
94%
97%
1 t'2j King Street- honne of CRASH ?!
A VIEW
TO A KILL
Producer : Domark
Memory required: 48K
Retail price: £10.99
Language: machine code
Author: Softstone Ltd
Surprisingly, this is the first
fame 10 be based on Ian
laming s superhero James
Bond. Taking the forni of a thr#&-
part arcade adventure. A Vmw
to s Kill is basod on the three
main actEon sequences of the-
film of the same name which js
due for retea$a any day now.
The basic plot of both 1 he film
end game is quite siraight-
forward, involving Bond in a
battle with a superbaddy who
has delusions of grandeur end
seeks world domrnetion. Thts
time, the evil one is called Max
Zorin end plena to blow up Silk-
on Valley with e theimonuclear
device to that he «ien corner ihe
silicon chip market end put
evefy oihe^ computer c company
out of bysiness, (Who needs
MaM — Mark Biit^r, Chris Coffy^
Psui Dyar et aU
Aviewofgameand
movie,.
You have to guide 0O7
Ihfough the three games, acqu-
iring e epec^al code on succeee-
lul completion of each task
which you inpul to start the next
game m the iriioggy. This code
contains information about your
perfomnance in the gan>e just
completed, and while you can
use the seme code to lump to
any piarticular game, the best
way to improve ycuf perform ^
ance is to play each game until
you heve done really ^elU
DefoTe mo-yiir^ or* to \m T\ex\
section. To complete the nnal
game, you must have done as
well ea Jemes himself would
have in the first two scensfjos.
ao unless you're really secret
agent material a lifile practice
will beinorderf
The game is played in real
lime but you are allowed to
pause, so you can sit bacfc and
sip your Martini. A choice of
beckgrounct music is offered;
you tan select the Bond theme
or the tune from the Quran
Dufan single. More sound
effects ere provided in the form
of spMCti output phrases such
es 'my name it JerriiM Bond' and
'Demmii' make occasional
appearances.
ntoT qurte icon drtven, ihe edv-
ifiture elements of the gemes
18 CRASH July 1985
ACHALl^tNlilNUJUAUlUN biKAUiiT mubnAwirun Tuunumoi
.., RtALM OP
3
f*^^^'^'
9
:
V
f^^'
!4
^JL^^t.
>..=.
• '*-
► Dramatic 3D
Graphics & Fast
Action ► (/nique
2-Player Co-op
eratJve Mode
► 4 Levels of
Difficulty ►«
Different
Dungeons ►729
Different Rooms
► Joysttck
Control r
* V
OBJECTIVE ▼
^ jrii« evil cl«rfc,
Wistfik, has stolen the
7 crowns of the
middle Kingdoms -
He has hidden them
all among his 13
Dungeon strongholds
- YOUR TASK - enter
the dungeons, find the ^^
crowns, and get out alive! ~~ '
tJiJatch out for the zombies,
'■snakes, spiders & orbs - gel
hit too many times and you're
dead,
f protect yourself with magic
crosses and spells. XXMX
AVAILABLE FROM ALL GOOD SOFTWARE RETAILERS ftn's not tfyere. ptesse order it -
Of m Q9Se ofditticuttY ser^d yaur crossed ch&que<'P.O. made to ArioUsoft if,i(. Ltd. induding your own
nameaftdaddeoss. toAnoiasok UK Ltd., Sutw tOS/im Asphafte House, P/ilsce Street LondOf> SWJ€SH*i
RiALMOFIMPOSSmtLITY Commodors or Atari Cassette £9 95 OisktIZ.BS
Sfwetfunt or Amnrad Cassette £4,9S -Alfpnces incfude VATSfpStp. U,K. orders ont^
JtuiH
C/3
Tr^pfft^rf ^n fhfi Pits of
BTff controlled via b "^duck shoot'
system which is diiplsyed in a
window on the right of the
scr^an. The upper part of this
window fiihows ihe symbols for
the it^&fns that you have in your
poiWV9i<in. and by using the
beyi or }oy^tidc they can be
iTtMe to scroll past a pointer lo
miku a cht>ice. Once an itam h^
been selected ft can ba usad
according to the instrucliofia
entered in I he tower p&rt of the
window. ThiB lowar area oon-
tains phrases auch as 'return',
'searcn^ drop', 'use' arid 'give'.
The command you sefe<^ ir^ ttie
kmer section will eel upon tt\e
object you aelecfed in tt^ie
section above.
Part One of the o*rne is set in
Parts. Bond has been bcSefod by
'M' end is having tunch with a
fellow agenl. wfien suddenly his
Oolteogye is killed by the ruth^
la^ as^^sin. M»y Day Bond
ch^^ he r to the top Of tha E rftal
Tower and watches in aman-
ment as she leeps off the lap.
Krachutmg down to safei^.
immandefiring a ta^xi at the
ftx>t of the towej", Bond attempts
to (|uide it through the streets of
Pens XQ the spot where May Oay
will land.
Using the controls, you have
to guide the taxi to May Day's
landing spot. The main scfsen
provides of 3D view of the road
ehead^ while the lower p#it tf^
play^ a map of the immedtele
area. You have a radio tra£fcer
which grves an indication of May
Otty's position. Driving round
the Paris streets you enojuntar
many hazards, and driving the
wrong way down one-^i^rty
streets will hav« the pofice on
your laiL setting up road bJocks
or maybe taking e few pot shots.
And watch out for the manic
Parisian drivers - too many col-
lisions and your i^r will stop
working.
i Miss May Day s landing , arHl
I It's back to the start for you. . . .
I Sen Francisoci provides the
20 CRASH July 1985
007
f,
setting lor Section Two, the City
Hall to be exact Bond and his
iri, Siecey, have found Max bui
e has turned the tables on them
by trapping them in the lift and,
baeause he's a n^ce sort of guy,
setting fire to it. Bond has esc-
aped Trom the lift but now you
must guide him, Ho must rescue
Stacey and escape from tha
burning building.
Not ail of the object* found
inside city hell wifi have any
immediate user the gelger
counter, for example, is ruewed
for the next game. As you move
from room to room the fire is
taking hold, ar>d time is of the
essefice. Your progress and that
of the fire is shown on a front
elevation of Cify Hall diaptayed
at the base of the scrsen. A ther-
nfiometel' on the right of the
screen lets you know when
things erf fMlbg too hot.
if you mentged to get past the
first two ganies then you &re
given the oiance to save Silicon
Volley end ne>d year's Spectrum
production. To complete this
section of the trik>gy Bond must
enlist May Day to help him get to
the nucEear device by convince
ing her of the error or her ways.
Ttie geiger counter shown at the
top fight of the screen will help
you locate the bomb end while
there's a great deal of jumping
and rope climbirkg to do, you
must always be on the look out
for useful ob|e4^.
The nfiina is reatly a huge
maM, end you can examine the
area immedietely around Bond,
so avoiding those spectacuiar
but annoying jumps into Obliv-
ion. When you looiie the bonnb
you must disebte It Theti you
end May 0«y can make off into
the suniset, safe in the know^
ledge that Max has had his chips
end the world is once more •
sefe end happy piece.
CRmciSM
• 'This i« a huge ganne with
many interrelaieo elamenti ttiat
make it extremely playable.
Some of the graphics are a bit of
a let down — Tm sure they could
have been a lot better. The
sound? well a great deal has
been promised and if ii is only
half as good as the CBM versiori
then they have dofie weil. The
speech is OK but perhaps a litlte
feeble, the effect is very similar
to the speech on Dmsthstar/nmr
c&pfor. The facility to play any of
the games in isolation is usefu)
but I f eei that once the problems
have been learnt and tackled a
few times the game wiN lose a
great deal of Pts attraction. On
ine whole though I think it fair to
say that for any Bond fans this
game is a must — especiBlly if
you intend to see the film be-
cause tliet should he^p it ail
make seme^ and provide you
witti some valuable dues to
solving the g^tie.'
• 'ff yo'ti've S99ff Improssible
Mission an tiw Commodom.
^nd hoped for &n equsfly good
Spi^cttum Si*€mf ^geo( g^mc
yOO woufd be S^dfy tfjfsa^j[WJ/3f ■
e^^^AViewioaKin. ThegrMph-
tcs /b3%^& a g^n e/a/ rmpf&ssion Of
being cmde^ and the Mmm
fh&msBfves weref) Yejr^crr/y^r/p-
ping. f^rhsps tf you see ibe fifm
first m Ghrmiis Uvmg T&cbni-
cofouf Cinemsscope or y\fb^i-
evef; your imsgrn^fiprt wit/
make up for ihe shortcomings.
BeMeen th&fn^ Urn MnM games
make tip a r€3WOfmbt» enM/fa/n-
ment pscksm, but somehow f
don'r think id be tot0fiY gripped
fofw/y/oiij/
B 'This is the first arcade 9arr\e
about Ian Reming's super
funkjilable] character Jetiee
Bond, Aoeni 007. t was quite sur-
prised whan I found out that this
was the only one on the market
as software houses seem to be
fatly ing up heroes like hot cakei.
I loved the opening sequefioe —
it was a very good effed el-
thonoti It dkl go Oil tor agee. The
ganntes tftennselves were play-
able and addictive, with fair to
gpod graphics. There is sorrw
nice speech in there too, but
other than that the sound v^as a
bi t un^ventfu 1 . 1 1 ike th e way you
can select your weapons, hard-
wefe etc« although it can Eead to
some problerrm in the mine
when jumping. I wish 007 would
show some sign of injury, his
resilience became a bit annoy-
X after a while. For instance
n i n the rni ne after f al I ing the
equivafent of 100 feet and land
ing on his head ha would lie flat
on his back for helf a second and
then get up and walk off as it he
hed |ust tripped up. StilL a fun
game overalF, and not a bad tie^
in
COMMENTS
Control keys: vary from game to
game, displayed on each title
SCfeen along with options
Joyttldi: K^rrip<>ii
Keyboard play: ^ood
Llse of colour; average
Grvfihjce: average, better in the
mine
Soured: DCCesioruiE bit of chat
Skill levelst t
Lives: ir^finite
Screens; three linked games
G*n#rat rating : certainly worth
having
Use of computer 73%
Graphics 67%
Playabilitv 75%
Getting started 84%
Addictive qualities 63%
Value for money 65%
Overall 76%
Loiider than the
game,-
ARCHON
Producer: Ariolasoft
Memory required: 4fiK
Retail price: £10.95
Language: machine code
AutRor: PaulReiche III
andAnneWestfall
Afchon is d stretegy gamfl
rsguiring quite # high degree of
ir»cte ikilL Tha main ptaying
irta looks remafkably like a
dt¥ts^ bo«ird until you notice thai
whilt ftome of thD squares m^
either btack or wtiiia othors ^re
ifl lori&s of 9fev. 3F^d changing,
As wiih choss you have two opp-
osing forces racing each omm
but unlika £he$$ the forcet afe
not fjiatehed. Each of the two
armieis hava differani pieces.
Mdi having indiviijual
strengths and w^aknessei
Before fhe aame begins ^oa
n^usi decide MtwMfi playi*^
for the good guw or for th^
powers of eviF — nacuratly a
sponsman would seled the
former. The gani^e can be playod
eithef again si the computer or
againsT another player byl in
#ny event to be suocesaful you
must learn to appreciate the
iff^tjividual powers of each of
yoyr pieces. Each side has dif
ferertt characters, or icons, but
overall they are matched. As
with cheM some icons ai^e able
10 move ahead only two or ^ree
squares while others may be
abie pass over other icons or
even, vvit h i he aid of a spel L tele
Krt to any location on the
ard.
To move you simpty m^nipu-
laie a oufsor square over a plaee,
press fire, then move the square
to the position you desire. If the
rr>ove is over a distance greater
than is allowed, or is iHegal for
some reason, perhaps becaiise
it is blocked by other pieces of
has been imprisoned by youf
enemy, then the computer will
tel) you. When playing the com-
puter it mov^ its pieces in
axactty fhi^ ^am£E way. aa it's
easy to follow its moves.
The object of the game is to
take and hold the five 'power'
points but to do thai you must
destroy the erwrny forces arid
this takes a great deal of shrewd
E fanning. Apart from having to
now the strengths and weak-
r>et8as of each of (he pieces and
r^nerrfbering how besi to use
Ihem, it's good lo caki ad vant-
age of situations unique to this
oAme. For examptt^ perhaps you
have just itm a major piece a#id
jn doing so have severely
wounded the opposirtg icon, ^m
yoy in a praition to send in a
rnirKjr icon and finish the }ob be^
fore tf^ enemy has a chance to
heal its wounds^ When you are
ready to attack all that i^s requ-
kvd li to move your icon over to
the occupied square then the
computer will ask il you want to
challenge the occupant. A |xis-
itive rmponse causes the mam
Tho jHJkwors ofltghf mtiil dark ftrmpmrv for wmr
Thff Phoenix pfopMreM iorhjitltc
display lo cher^e for the battle
screen.
The battle screen has a tif^
strength irulicaior foraachof the
icons in combat, a first time
player may be horrified to notice
the Kife baj^ of his opponent's
icon is three times greater than
his own. At the start ol battle the
two Econs are positioned on
opposite sides. At various and
constanlly changing locations
around the screen blocks are
located, these act as barriers for
either s^de to cower tiehind, Tl»
two icons must fight it out to the
death and the winner will, 0l
course, win the square for which
they are fightirbg. Depending on
the nature of the icons involved.
The mode of attack will vary, for
some are ab^e to fire bolts and
can cause darriage at a distance
while others must make contact
to strike a blow Themneatof thie
game, however, is making sure
that your icon is able to defeat
the enemy ar>d this is where
strategy comes in. Try not to
take on an opponent that has
greater strength While some
icons are able lo move at greai
speed they may only be able to
fire at close range, others move
very slowly but a direct hit from
one of these could kill you Other
icons may possess speed and
strength but require long inter-
vals before they can fire again.
The minor icons enter the batt^
fietd with very little strength, but
with luck and nifty pPay perhaps
you may inflict a lethal bUow.
To make thl^strateg^c element
oJ the game ev&n more complic-
ated ine program introduces
concepts such as 'lummosjty
cycles' and 'power points', tf
you decide lo attack an rcon on a
power point then thai icon wrll
be much stronger th^n normat
as well as being protected from
the effects of magic The lunriin-
osity cycle dictates that white
icons on sr^uares of their own
colour are stronger {dark on
hbck etc) some of the squares
wiM change in colour. The effects
of the magic applied by if^e
magicians make for greater
complexity, the spells can only
be used once and iheir use
weakens the icon. The revive
spell a News you to bring beck
from the dead a useful icon
while the summon spell allows
you call an icon that did not
previously eKist. While these
icons will only iastfor one battle^
they are very powerful and will
almost always win. Other spells
include telepon. heaL e?cctiiiioi
and imprison Smce ihe useofa
spell a I the appropriate time can
mske fiigniTicanl changes to
your progress,, you must make
very sure that your magician is
protected while at all times try-
ing to find ways of destroy mg
the enemies
CRiriCfSM
• Archf^n looks similar to chess
but ddn'( turn the page yet. in
flay this is nothing like chess. All
can really say is that this is
simply the most addictive strata
e||y game I have over played I It
W)ll appeal TO strategy and arc-
ade pTayers alike, in fact it is e«-
f?nHal that you possess the
lalents of both. My only comp-
laint IS the price at almost £11 I
think It's a httle bit steep/
• 'Afchon h»$ Wff/ay#sarf my
besi of f^mes f ha^ fitt/^ of no
tsfeni for ptsyrng chi?&s but f3m
frytng very h^f^ to msster tftis
because it fs so rnocf} more fun. i
fove aff the subr/eiies the gsm^
offers, rjot onfy tfje effect of ih»
tuminosiry cycfe but ^ho how
dfff^f^f^t pieces behAv& on the
bsntescreen Heve you aver
known a ttn7e m chess y^^hen a
Pdwn tsk^ a Qu^&n snd they
botf^ tose^ Wefi ft happens here^
because theptecc f attacked bad:
been so Vi^aiened by earfier
&nscks my fcon fust managed to
adn^inisier the death bfow he-
fore carchinff a fireball that wes
Bt/^ady tn fhghi f most strongty
recomm^iiit those of you who
en^y strategy g&nii^s lobuytha
— 3Arch0n rijalty is a game thai
you Will keep coming back to
play Complarnts? well onty two.
the grap'h^cs could have been
better antf for that matter so
could the sound. The saoood
complaint relates to the moua-
ment of icons. or>ce a piece hn
been selected it must be moved
— rKrt even cf>Bss is quite that
strict^ but then chess was never
this good ■
COMMENTS
ContiOl keys: Q/A up/down, Z/
Xleft/righr,Ctofire
Joysticfc: Kempston, Sinclair
Keyboand play: responsi^
Use of colour: limited
Graphics: average
Sound: very little
SkUl levels: 1
Uvn: N/A
Set«ans:2
General rating: an Invotved
game, very good Jhough pricey.
U se of € o m put er 8 1 %
Graphics 72%
Playabilitv 85%
Gettmg started 83%
Addictive qualities 92%
Va I u e f o r money 69%
Overall 83%
CRASH July 1985 21
ai(e£^
QUACK
SHOT
Producer: Creative
Sparks
Memory required: 48K
Retail price: £2S0
Language: machrne code
Author: C.SPryke
With games such m Toy Smfw
end Chtfcky £gg 2 there reaNy
does seem to be a spote of
mdu^tnal cnsi$ garner, aft^r a
OhJIdhood spent playinp of these
gvmes I'm not surprised thai
fio4>odv wants to go mto mdus-
try — it's toq dangerous.
In Ouackshot the player
assumes the fole of a nig hi-
watchman at the Acme Clocfc-
woFk Toy Factory, who, no
doubt had hoped that hm firsi
night on (he job would b« a qutet
one, not a chanced He is going to
face a a rovolut*on, As he ^n-
plorcs The factory complesf he rs
faced with numerous loySp
ducks, spiders and sn^kcrs 1o
name a few For some reason a K
the toys have luk^n a strong dis-
like to watchmen and are out to
kill him. His only mean« of def-
enoa are a stun gun and anti^
duck bombi. The gun only fires
left #rKt right so the borr^bs are
needed to rid those toy^ f^ot pre-
pared lo come out and chance a
^tr^ighl fight. In fad a bomb will
dear the whole screen of every
sort of nasty byt as the tombs
are limited yoti can'i use ihem
tooliberaliy.
The game is played over a
series qf 16 linear mazes Each
maze is about 5 screens lorig
and access to rhe next ma?e is
gajned by fmdmg the key which
unlocks the door Each progres
sive maze hais an increasing
number of locks within it, fore-
ing you to collect more keys to
work your way lo The next door,
As you can only carry one key at
a time this means e^cposing
yourself more frequently to the
nasties while you go l^ack to get
the next key. The maze is full o1
surprises, the lea^t pleasant
being a helmet shaped creature
that nomas in on you at great
speed Trenspori chaimbefS
allow you to tetocate yourself, a
useFut meant of escape Points
are scored for moving from one
maze to another and for picking
up strange objects from wiihm
the mwe. apart from the keys
these objects h^ive no other pur-
pose As you move Ihe mare
scrolls sideways A map of the
ctjrrent ma^e «$ shown at the top
of the screen and a countdown it
provrded to allow ihe p^iiyer a
measure of progress m any per-
licular maze
CRmCISM
I 'Quackstiot « a vtry original
22 CRASH Julv 1985
E] [11I30 OEltSQlQllII £][£]
Looking for thm way out Tntm mms* om In OUACKSHOT
and very addictive mere-cum-
platfoffn fanrie. The scrolling
screens beer a strong resem
blance to Skoof Oaie but the
game \s very different. Ttie
graphics themselv^ are a gmi
eing perfectly smooth, no flick-
er at alk Creative Sparks must
have been proud of if^ graphics
because they actually pnnt a
screen picture on the front of the
intay card, f^y only criticism is
that rhe pattern qf Ihe maze
walls never char^ges but this is a
minor point because the game is
so addictive. The sound is eKcel-
leni with a tune and additional
effects The map at the top is a
great hejp but beware of beirig
attacked while studying ii The
action IS pretty quick Icertamly
quick enough for me) so it's
ooing to take some mastermg.
Qusckshof ig a superb arcatw
game, well worth a ^ook at.'
• 'Quackshot is one of The best
mMe gdrrws I've seen over the
pest /ew months. it/o$t seems w
haye so much fife if^ *L it's re^lfy
wsckyf With n^n^ stages, th&
gs/7W buffds up rn i^ftfrculty from
r&Bsof7at>fy chsfk^nging to rfearf
hsrd. Quacker!^ proves th^t you
don't fteed compfex pfots an^
rasAs to make a gre^t game —
fUSipfet}tY 0isCti0i7f*
• Tm sure everyone's got a
game like this — it's fun to ptay
and very addictive, but you
never seem to play it because
you a^ays ptay the brilliant
games rnstead. Qua^kshot has
great graphics that scroir well
and are nicely drawn, the sounci
is quite good and there i$ a lot of
rt (which makes a change). One
thing that the instructions don'l
say IS thai you get a limited
number of bombs and shots
with your stun gun which makes
playing even harder' I love aO
the dinerant keys that are out lo
get you/
COMMENTS
Cofitrol keys: 0/C up/down, N/
M left/right, SS fot bomb, S lo
fire
ioy^kh : Ke m pston and Si ncia if
Keryfaoard playi comfortable
Use of colour: very good
Graphics: very good
Sound: good
Skill levels' i
Lives: 4
Screens: about 80
General ritifig^ a very good
g^me eapeciil fy when you oon-
siderltie price
Use of computer 78%
Graphics 83%
PlayahilitY 88%
Getting started 81%
Addictive qualities 85%
Value for money 85%
Overall 86%
iif
WT
PANIC
Producer: Firebird
Memory required: 16K
Retail price: £2.50
Language? machine code
Author: M Rogers and M
Craig
Now here's a very $jmple lrttt«
task for you» You are in conirgl of
a droid stranded in some far ^nd
dis^tent alien c^t^ hold which is
iitiered with T^dy beafs. The
Gucidliee ere desperately needed
on Eanh io satisfy the wo rid
Teddy bear shortage
The game is played over four
platforms, one above the orher.
each of which would be contin-
uous but for the gap thst your
specaship fits into. Eievatorsare
placed at regular intervals allow-
mg movement up or down bR
tween the p fat forms. The droid
moves the bears afong the plat-
fomi by firing his blaster ai
them, so making them chunler
along until they fall over the
edge into the spaceship's hold
AM pretty simple so far . , . orw
tirtie problem is that the bears
are coma mi na led and muil be
purified wMh a burst of blaster
before the droid can touch them .
Ea&y if you remember to admin^
jster a quick blasi before psasir^
them. The droid can only men-
age to move two t>ears at a time
otherwise forward progress will
be very slow ir>deed and sfieed
is important because of a little
green alien which bears more
than ^ passing resemblance to
Tyrannosaurus Rex (the prehts-
loric version, not the Mventiet
Slam group} This chap seems to
ave bII the cards stacked in his
favour, weli it is his planet after
all Vou can't shoot or outrun
him, the only advantage being
that you can change platforms
by more than one level at a time
\it you're near the lift} and the
alien can only hop up or down
one level at a time, bui even so
^t^ying out of the monster 'sway
while trymg to load the ship is
far from «a«y.
«t
I-l
When a batch of Tdddies have
bmn loaited into your «pac^
cfafi ii will rise up & l^veK. T)ie
craft will take afi for the neitt
screen After it has recerved a
load from each platform. The
following screens are progress-
ively hnrder with the inlroducl-
ion of mor^ monsters but theS9
^ddifjqnal monsters con be dis-
posed of bv knocking them off
the edge-
cnmciSM
• Don't Pantc had me panick-
ingn it must be one of ihe most
iniuriatin^ games that I have
played this year. Voy get a nice
fong Nne of teddy bears ready to
ptish jr>to your ^p^ce ship when
oyt of no wh^r^ a monster
f^ppears and sitrts chasing you. I
feel that this gmrm iw ^ivllv
'. mfa i r on the player, you a re pro-
viried with a lazer that doesn't
work o^ the alien who you tan'i
run 4fwav ifom because he runs
faster then you Oon't P^mc has
n^ce big graphics which are weN
animateo and scroll well. The
soiind ts okay , bei ng m ai n ly spot
e^ect^ and a so rt o ft i c ki ng noise
from the droid. I enjoyed playing
this game until I reached the
point at which t could go no
further after that it was just very
fry $t rati ngr'
• " Dhd n 't Pa n ic" is a simpfB gsme
in totti desigri ^mi concept snd
its pretty Aa-itf to losd up
&fit>ugh t^ifdii^ to get your
rocket off the fftst scrm/t. The
Green Monster fs a real menmB,
snd /'m on/y gfad that his mates
dof^'t WEndBr around the streets
of Ludfowf Ove/a// good ¥s/ue
for the pffce, but / didrf't finii n
terffbiyaddictiYe/
• Just what have Firebird got
against Teddies then? Pushing
the cuddly little beasts around
and hurling them off platforms
into a rocket fuel making pl&nt.
Rotters.
Ai fifsi glance the game
siems overfy simple, but once I
fiertad p4ay»ng it I found I was
hooked. That green monstef is
infufialrng — rf would have been
nice to have been abie to take
the odd shot ^t it and slow it
down or somelhing. As it iS, the
Greern Meanie tends to follow
you round, and appear just
when yoLi thought you'd crack-
ed ^t and got a good herd of ted-
dies lined up for the push.
A bit of strat^y is needed to
get anywhere on this game, it's
no good |ust aimlessly pushing
bears in the ri^ht dtrecti^on, I
think ril be playinp it for a while
yet. Don't Panic? I hardly
stopped/
HI
aup
BJflst tfie f m dMm bmfnra thm miemrler 9«t« »wi
COMMENTS
Control keym^ redeftnable
Joystkk: any
Keyboanl play^ no problems
Use of colour: limiled
Gr^phidi: better then average
Sdund: limited but at leaat
average
Skill levalf:l
Lives: B
Screens:
Genafal ntingp a better than
average game.
Use of computer:
Graphics
Playabilitv
Gettinp started
Addictive qualities
Value for money
Ova rail
75%
70%
71%
68%
78%
80%
70%
bo Ybirrinb
CHOOSINO.
SOFTWARE
HARD? ^
I I j I ! i
At the ¥mGm OJUm mmiES, we've worked
Jong and hard to put togeth&r t he IfBf '^iUBfiST
ffJIffGf of COttPVTiB StfFTWM fiAMES. We 'VB
got an unrivalled selection of, , . Arcade Games, ^
-Ad^eRtufs^^amee, WafGarme, Oassic Garms, Fanuty
Games, Sf>orts Games, Business and Educational
Software For Spectrum, QL, Atari, BBC, Electron^
Commodore 64, Commodore C16, Enterprise, MSX and
Amstrad machines, i i i ■ i i
4
Pfus a large stock of utilities, peripherals, chess computers,
books and magazines ^ and a range of Sinclair Commodore
and Amstrad hardware. And ft m fkid ctiQostng soffware
tianSf we have a team of knowledgeable staff to tietp fou.
— I i 1 1 \ 1 r
i ■
GAMES CENTRE
1^2 Union street. Aberdeen > 94/96 Brjggate. Ijeeds * 22 Oxford Streets London Wt
in street. Aberdeen > 94/96 sriggate. tjeeas * 22Dxf(ir
i„ — 1 ^ 1— i 1 i ( 1 i
^im^m-^i^^
CRASH July 1385 23
iSIau^
I
KNOCK-
OUT
Producer: AHigata
Memory required: 41K
Retail price: iBM
Language: machine code
Author: Steve Cattell
I GrUppose a boxing game m &
naturol progression horn the
litems of mvcG iep and thii AMig-
ata offering is the firs! of many.
In all you wiM fighilhree bouls
with each of two opponents, ItHl-
lan Stallion and Slugg«sr Sffm,
and a gruesome loolcing p«if
th«y are too, Youf first Opponent
will come out fighting from th©
the blue comer U$ing i^ it her the
fcdvboard or tht |oy stick you
control your man through somi^
sin-rple boxinig marioeuvres to
inOict as mucli damage on him
while irving to avoiiJ his ftiiar
some punenes. The f«mQ all
cjws you to throw he«idl or body
punches oi to defend yourseif
6v putting MO f flward A stamina
bar with eighteen gradu^Hons
suffers the loss of & graduiition
per blow received. Pot every
blow yoLj score against Slugger
a litlls' arrow appears at Ihe top
of the scr&en and when Ihe line
of arrows exl^nds across tha
screen and reechet the KO"
marker then you have won the
round.
Sluggef has an advantage be-
cause lira iHiriGhffis nql only
reduce youf stamina bar but
reduce his clamage by one
arrow. A skjlfut player can re-
duce this ad van tape by deHver-
ing bodv bJows while Slugger's
guard is up — thai scores two
arrows.
After winning three bouts with
Slugger you are g^ven a secret
£Ode to be entered before vou
can load Ihe neict opponent from
Ihe othei^ side or the tape.
Defeat ing ttalian Stallion re-
quires e great deal more ski It be^
cause he is an extremely un-
pleasant betng^
CRlTiCISm
• I didn t really like playing
Knockouts I'm not sure why be
i:ause it's go! great graphics and
even a bit of the tune from Rocky
3 at the start. I just found it totally
uriplevebie and not at aM addict-
ive. I think it was something to
do with the apeed of your man's
teactfor^ wiich where both
slow and unreirfistic.'
• *8oKm^ fs s v&ry diffkrufi
gsme ro simuMe on a compui^r
snd ii cBfi onfy be done ^degtj-
Bfefy by indudtng a lot of dei^ti
Bnd skiff fsquifBrnenis to m^ke ft
sddktive Knockout {^€ks both
if7gf€di&nf5, ^fter iwo rounds t
whs bared. Neither & crowd or ^
referee sre mpr^senied tf rtrf ttw
24 CRASH Julv 1985
pteyer onty h&s a choice of two
punches. The moveme/ifs am
preffy re^f anrf ftuterrt, af Umes
they (ook elective The sound is
ok&y boi do^s drive you mW
sfter B while, i think more cpuid
hsve b^en made of the g^me ife
wid^ choice ofcom^tHors ftarf
beenofhred,
• If I hadn't played the arcade
bo?i:ing garr^e f may have been a
little more imipr&^sed with tfie
game. The graphics are adequi-
ate but the whote game is let
down by the slowness of the act-
Fon and wh<ii appears to be a
poor response by the player's
man.'
COMMEATTS
Control keys; I to body punch. Q
to head pur^ch, G lo gyar d. Q/W
left/rioht
ioyaflclc^ Protek, Kempston
KeytH>ard pfay: ^acks f espionse
Use of colour: fair
Graphics; good
Sound; dErtght
Skin levete; 2, not selectable
Lives; 1 for each boyt
General rating ; below avera^
Use of computer 60%
Graphics ^%
PtavabiKiY 45%
Getting startMl 62%
Add ictj we qualities 47%
Vdlue for money 5Q%
Overall 52%
FRANK-
ENSTEIN
Producer: Icon
Memory required: 48K
Retail price: £6.95
Language: machine coda
Author: Peter Fothergill
The theme of this game 4s very
sinniiar to fantasac Voyage in
that you conlrol a sprite makincj
its way through the innef wgrk
ings of a human body. This time
Ihe sprite tS kn the form of a kittle
space craft (as m the filoi Fant^
astic Voyage! art^ the body ts
that of some humanoid mon-
ster. Your task, as Freddy Frank-
ensto^n desoendant or Victor
Frankenstein, is to guide the
craft thfough the ten mem reg
ions oi thebody to find arid ^t-
hvale Ihe bioiiiC rm plants wtlhin
^!. But before he can t>e allowed
to gel up and hobble about you
must also frnd and destroy the
neurons responsible for the
monster's wiched behaviour in
the past. oihenA^isehewillgetup
to bis old tricks of chasmg young
maidens and killing dH cobble rs^
Your lourrtay oegins in the
Trachea where you have to
dodge left and right to gel past
the ranks of oncoming frogs
(you may well wonder, but
trachea means throat — oeddit)!
VVhen you colNde with aTfog, or
indeed with any olher moving
object Within the body, the dam^
age bar shown at the base of the
screen increases. Anoiher bar
shows the amount of OKypen
remaming and when it raaoies
i^efo or the damage bar reaches
: Rli^MT UUNC
.^ LEFT ILUNQ
• STOMACH
t RIGHT KIDNEY
K IDNCY
NTeSTlNC
I HERRT
10 BROXM
PRCS5 sp«ce
TO CONTINUE
1
DRMROe
OXYOCN
MIOH
TTm mmitt bodY oUhm^mtm fflAMKtNSJFUt 2000
maximum then the iame is
over.
Your ne^ct stop after the throat
rs the right lung. Here you must
get past the bouncing cigarette
packets to activate the implant
and then make your way out
agam. Each pari of the body is
eKplored in order, after the lungs
you move on to the stomach, the
liver» kidneys^ intesline, heerl
and finally the brain The
graphics for each of the organs
vary widely but essential fy the
task IS the sarm — those ar^as
that do not contairi a iransplant
may simply require you lo worfc
your way to the other side coll-
eciing bits end pieces as you gq.
In the stomach, for example, you
must collect ih^- M.-. i ■!*■.: i-. r.f
bacon while avonlmy tr-^M nii^js
After every second organ you
find yourself in a blood vessel
where you can restore your oxy-
gen level by shooting the ak
bubbles, but colliding with thom
will increase your damage and
that can only be reduced by find-
ing, and absorbing the odd
spanner left about the place
After each screen has been
completed you are returned to
ihe main screen which ^hows
tho^ parts of the body that can
be reached and th^ n^xt area
about to be iieQOtiateci^ On this
screen you are grwfi your mrr-
ent score and ttie highest sc^ire
achieved ^
V.
9£
c
p
"^
f J
10
Ihf^ t
OMMOl K -i
oese 314^ * & diuuiLS I. BO» MAO£ mv AfiLt^ro aE%i
D-Y-N-A
. !■> -i-^^^
|.T*E
DYNAMITE
DAN
Producer: Mirroraoft
MemoTY required: 4fiK
Retail price: £5-95
Language: macfiine^Kle
Author: Rod Bowkett
Oesipnirftg eldgant Qfiptiics so
rtist loads oi scroefis Add up to
womB won of buiktino^ has bmon
all lh# raoe since JSw. bm thit
new Mirrorsoft platform gamn
ukm tha idsa about as far as
poiHM^^ and tsaly ra^ one ot tha
most claislcally ^iagant byild-
inos in my gamt. uan's girl-
frlafid (our pm-i^rudycticiri copy
lades a ttwiario) appaatii to
hava fa^^n )ochod in the vast ^^ta
tiFdtad in !ha d^pth^ of a ma^-
lv« pqrticoed. pil tared mansion
inhabfted by a variety of un-
plaasant danizena. Dan arrives
on iKa rtiof lirondyy in time for
fha new Bond movie) in an air-
^ip, d«$c«ridi from i^ snd oom-
nnericds a missiori of r«scya.
Should you antaf Ihe screen
containing ih« safe, vou'ir sea
itie girl Fiaclriii up and down in
frustration and, pfasumatity. in
an advancing state of asphixia*
tion.
Tha collaciable obiects in Ihlis
fiaina are tfidcs ot dynamtie
ajght na«d«d tp btow tha safe),
a "wsapon to detend yourstflf
with against tba rioting rotien.
and fdCHj to leap up the en«rgv
l«vef that dial rrofiod damsel res-
cuing defnands. Fotxl is a ralai-
fvety simple find — being m
WWlVhy tiOiJ^. thafO'$ plenty
Mm around, bui dynamite
lindi !o h\m in very inacaoasa-
>le places; wo^a still, it isn't In
tha samia place aadi game.
The housa is divided tip into
48 sliphtlv overlapning scrmans.
six h^h, aSghi ^ '^^ay
wrap around ht nk^
ifig Iha building eUtif-t^vtiiy d cyi-
inoer All along the bonorti runs
a rivef. This can be negatiai^
by waiting for a raft tO rlO&t by,
fc^lpi^g down onto it End keep^
9 up vyrtth il by walking a! its
iciMd, Fallinp into the nver is
jltefatar, unTess you have been
anoitgh to discover an
"^OKygien boMB somawhi^a.
Above the river is a warfan of
foliaga- lined cav» arMj pfonoa.
gra<kially mingling wth iha
bowels of the houtse, pi^nf>
rMfYis^ boilt^f roomSp ataqtricty^
ganrerator and store roocns.
Above these are ih*^ rnriinirul
ioui living apartme"
arias, bathroorrts, dii .. . .;< . ..v.. . .^,
26 CFtASH July 1385
S.\r
»f^
©ft*
■1
r.
t^M
S:^
m
|j
\
!
ss
a[MCRS¥ ^ ii 1 : 13S
«■»
silling rooms and the like. Th«
bui1drr>g is topped off by ihe roof
wilh Its i:rhimnios and classirially
domed towers.
Different ff*atiir*»^ incl^wte
tram[>oliner!^
line rooms,
telafxms and ati ^t-lioors Jiff.
Dan himself is a large anlfnati?cf
chirracior with a fair-si?
COfVli
avoii; m..^ .....Mt:.-..: :,.
allhocigh if ha falli ha
lososalife.
And just to add a little aittra
exatamafit to wMrig the pujEile.
a niat lady at Mirromnf? r^fr* ms
that tho first person
Thorn wrth Ihi* nfrmf
ipJayed whf^^ aliip ta^us
off at ih^ «it game will
wjn a flight m tha Goodv^r
tilimp- 01 5223947
CRincis,
• 'Mirrorsoh have cartajnly
come lip In the vvodd wllh thfa
game, t can ramembar Omssr
the CQt — thai had nice graphios
anil was a ^Tart ObvSou^Sv itiis
I to t^ -d
,..,-„,.,,,- ,.,,, IdoF^'i »• lit
to ^ BO becnus^ ^m
ann int5ri: s r- ■ intam
— each acrec^ icked.
Also Jhis musi t> M©
thai hm h&d cor as
(and ' therii) as waii u
non^ ' 3 effects t rfot^'t
it tiebafff
&%^ . _ _ .. . TTiofa to -
alament m this than in JSW sa
well
Exploring fha roofna is Qmai
fun, sohfing the diffarant waysot
how to get at the dynamite to be
able to of Dw 1 hp safe is not an
ea^ task, but the gim^ would
have no lasiing appeal tf ii was
an easy one. You eertainly need
tha ten I i ves they have oimn you
Wd even wifh Inliniie uvea I stilt
haven't solv^ the- problem of
coll4icling all the dynamite.
Is it addictive? Weil Tve spent
a good six houn so far ravitw^
ing this game, that spaaks tor
iteelf when you get to sea
hundreds m a year. Tha newly
ereated super^haro Dan is
bonjnd to becorne very popular,
I Pan of a trito^y of games?) If
you had tha tiniesi incJinaikm Co
- JSW then you1l abso^ytefy
J ore this game — it is much
b^ter and has much more
ContRnf — hrghly recommarYd
• Mlrrofwti dcftfi'fi productt
mafiy arcado-flcticm gamoi. but
otrtainlY l^^ on^ iney do n^-
\BmiB ire i^l a pretty high iian-
djfd. Dynam^ie D^n hm %q bo
one of tl^e most t^ ' -jmcis.
I've encounterod, ^ rm
sumrisifig to leani iKa! its
Aytnor, rs a mtjsicfan in Hh day
pb. Wliila plotfofm jympjrvg
tianiim am riigirdfKi aa chjI oI
ashiion in some circl^^ the
overall eocribineijcifi cif iciynd.
grii)>hi» arvd effects ifi tli^v
gama combine u^ make it ex-
Irismfilv good vmlim eniertair>^
m€nt. Theft's Nfe in the old
&}fitT<Dl keyi: ciefjnable
JovntNA: my
Keyboard p(«V' 9<>od
Uf# of co^oiir: eKallen!
Qnph Ics : f ksl ck&s So4jr»d :
m&gs-bfill
Skin levili; om
Lives: ten
Screom: nearly fifty
Gmaraf ratliig: Syp«fti, valiw
f rir money gaitie
Us# of computof : 95%
Graphics: 96%
Playabilitv: 96^^
Gettm^ started : 94%
Addictive qualKi^s: 96%
Va I y e f o r mon ey : 94 %
Ovefall: 94%
ed. Bnllinnl! I my ft nisw go and
frrid rhe fesl of th« dynamite/
# Tfttf ffr»phJ^ u.^i?ff In this
Mme am Dt. & joy to
Jf^nk (ft fftti w^..,.. . .rW build-
■Jfi* yaw Idvtf £0 p^^y Tb&
kvay ihe semens ara hm out t£
some fjEsty if^ps tike ffm weH
which goGS aH ifw vv^ay
A^o&oowww^^imf The arninge'
m^t fS m&ify a cyhnd^r with a
gtiist thj»sm b&fw^ffeft The h»t¥es
of the hou$^. but smsfl pt^t-
^orrvs, oh^n T/ny fr,3ngies, do
siap you fi^Itffig to yaur d^i^tb m
the f rtfftr.
Of^B thing t avii^atf ^ the wb ^
you hi^ ve t^ feep tmm si^mepfd r
fofnt hiffh in the siry into en^^her
sjrreim 'wilhoui knowmg whete
you witi /&n - ough after a
few ^^phr^. S-, you get fo
km ryuui liowever, the
pht' of ob/ects ts ottered
betwemi gamw to edd to fmstinQ
mpe^f Jiimihef fwourite are
me mmfiofiWS, lh&$§ work ty
«
CRASH July 1985 27
A GREMLIN IN
ROGER KEAN hurt/es up theA68 to visit
GREMLIN GRAPHtCSin Sheffield
WORKS.
uietly sitting at homa ofia tvanlfig bnt
ftumm«r, watching Xhm «ver^in9 ntrw» and with
computof games far from mf miml, the peace
wu ahffltHvd when ih\% platlorm game S4id-
dvrtlY ippwrect on the screen Startled with
injured s^iprise that »ofiie up^Uirt new comp-
lin y shoukJ dafe to feature a nww game an telly
b^^ofe letting CRASH know, all I c^^iughl of the
item was that it had sofnething to do with
Arthur SiLargill. Vlyihg pickets ftnd a mole. It
«e#m«d trecidily tOfkicaJ — ai^other chAAp b^nch
juifipifig on the garrwa bendwaggon with a rip-
off idea limri to catch the miners^ suike? The
cofnp«ny't name wai Gremlin Graphics- In the
event CRASH watn't misled out. We got an
eerly Spectrum version, doctored flo we would
could visit any room in Gaii« non« o1 us were able to withstand the
flying pitlcet^ or the infamoyi crushers, and thus we were intro-
duced to the delights of Wijnted Monty Mofe, and became acquaint
twJ with Gremlin Graphics p the company that won the 1 Wl CftASH
Rowlers Award for the best platform game^ far from a rip-off. That
was in July Gremlin Graphics has now been going lor a year and it
S#emed time to visrt SheffiLv^ld and Find out how things were going.
HOW TO GET A GREMUN GOING
Alpha House; Carver Street is a gaunt Victorian afTice block that
mighi once have been lashionabfe but now lies virtu P^Hy. though
UdiFv, empty. The Gremlins refer to it as the prison', an impression
reinforced fay the long, rl^arrow corridors painted m institution
maroon and creafn. Grernlin Graphics hai two rooms which for
some obscure w^^^n ar& situated high up in the building and qurte
some way fronn the ancreni lih which no-one seems to use. When I
spoice to Ian Stewart. Sales aiod Marketing Director, about the visit,
he told ftie to stop outside a shop called Just Micro. This lurned out
to be 3 thriving ar>d very busy computer shop '^htch is owned by Ian
and his partner Kevin Norbiim, the Financial Director of Gremlin
Gfaphics^ A phone link t>Btween the shop and ihe office, soon
bfought Ian down to greet me and drtig me awey from ih^ beeping,
squamtifig screens that lined three walls of the shop's interior.
The corrMorBof Alpha House may has/e been pn son -like, but once
thfough th« door and into Gremlinland, a different atmosphere per-
vacietl. Of tfie two rooms, one is a general office, and the other,
larger, room is equipped with deaks. compiJter? and greens for the
in^ncKJse prop ramming teamrThe programmers had gaih^red spec:
ietly for my visit (n'wre to give a thifd-degree on CRASW reviews than
In my honour I suspected— the usyai reason programmers want to
talk to magazine peopled ar>d were bu^y faHing over the yMquitous
C6, which 5©ems to have taken over from the Porsche m a eoftware
house vehjcje, I never did ask what \t wfts doing up there on the third
door.
Bttore found trig Gremlin Graphics Ian Stewart had already acc-
timutMecf 12 years retailing experience culminating ^n a gro^p
managafship for Laskys. but the rtch to work for himself proved too
strong and he joined forces with Kevin Norburn to open a computer
shop. liVhen Kevin and myself had opened Just Micro^ we always
said as soon as the shop got rolfing and we found the lirne and the
necessary programmer, that we would like to have our own software
house/
Tht shop did oet rolling and the first necessary programmers
transpired in the form of Peter Harrap and Tony Crowther ian and
Kevhn were well aware ffom (he start that rhcy would have to put
tog<?ther a professional team to qel safely off ihe ground. Tony
Crowther. already well known ^or nis Commodore programs tO<?0,
Son of Btsgg^ and Kflhfwmt, was made a comp^iny director imd
went on to write Potty Pigeon and Sw€*^e Effprms for Gremlin
before differetMies on the wurd led to his leeving the company.
indent Qfifilfa Cfflpllfe* tafffedl eheJUlFiPCWO*
Looking around to ensure good distribution, fan nockoned GMiff
Brown of US Goldr who had just started Cemr^soft distributors
was goino to be a power and invited him lo become managing
diieotor. But it was with young Pete Harrap that Gremlin really got
GOLD COAL DIGGEBS
'Peter Harrap f^rst came tg us with a complaint;' len tecalls, 'which
was that hisCurrah Microsp^^^h had blown his Spectrum up ' At the
time Pete was at university. He was into hecktng and programmir^g
to son>e degree and had written a program that allowed you to
redesmn and rebuild the city m Quiclcsilva's Anr Attack, Me sent it lo
them, Dul Quichsifva declined to use it Over the protracted matter of
Currah gettirsg the damaged Spectrum repaaredp Pete visited Just
M icro a lot . As J an says, 'We got to know h im qu ite ¥^H , and a Ithough
t think he got aggravated on a number of times, we made a friend
mona than anytnrng else We said to him. 'well you're into prog-
rammirm why don^t you spend a bit more time on it end develop a
game? So we got talking and I came up with the idea of e mole^ and
we decided it woutd be a plalform game. Peie's father is a mine
training officer, so we decided to use f hat and put the game under-
ground^ a mole car* go above or below ground, which adds variety.
As he wos writing it the miners' Strike dirveloped,. SO we introducitid
different criteria iinto the program to tie in with the ^rike like Ihe
fiysng pkcketeAnd the effigy of Arthur Sea rg ill :
II was the caricature of Scargili that gave Ian « hook upon which to
hang his launch. Eight r^io stations, netionai newspapers ar>d
28 CRASH July 1985
A GREMLIN IN THE WORKS
national mievJf ion now^ gave rhe game coverage it was a useful
boosf , but jt was 3 lot of hgrd vAiorh, ii didn't just happen — whmt«
within wheels to see tha program qof ihe ^Mposufa it did- Reatly,
from that point wti've grown to the stage w^'ra at now/
LOOKING BUO YAISIT
With $0 many iicttw^ra houses fmdmg themselves in a dodgy con-
dition faiely. I asked Ian what he felt abDui Gremlin's position in the
marlcel after one year.
'I ^ee It as being very heatthy . As far as other software houses are
eoncem&d, Iheif approach must be to be very careful about who i+iey
deal with and make sure their ad vertiiing expenditure is reasonable
but not too Eow k€iy They wtit alw have to ba carafiil about the
quantfty of games rel^^sed through the year, with thefear of damage
irig the sales of one produci up igainsi another I don't mind market^
ing my product agairkst son^eon^ else'i. bui not agamst my own. It's
a waditeof advertninBfor one, iind obviouily the prog rammur^ don't
get the rewanjs they should do from the sates their programs
aciiieve/
Ian redions the b^sin«ns hm got much fougher over ihe past
twelve monthf and thai li is rw longet etsy for people to ^t up a
software house and make a success of it. lf we we re starting this July
instead of lest J u ly , it wou Id be a tat al ly d rffer ant sto ry . We ca me in at
the right time with the r^ght product and the right marketing and it
worked for us. Nowyou have to havea ir^k record, and tha way you
^ about presenting games to a distributor has got to be profei»$
lonal The waiy you market the product has got to be sensible and you
must have your pf ogroms ready well in advar^ce. I think we're hitting
a happy situation at the moment where we're able to backlog ioft^
ware so we can release it when we want. Itut we propose to keep
releasing right through the summer to keep the name in the fore-
front I would like to think that Gremlin will be one of the top five
^ftwar^ houses by tha end of the year/
On tlie Spectrum there am sevaral planned reteases licking off
wttti flteiver Bob Hn O&m Trmib^l toltowed by Gwrrv^ GumphnsY
— Supef^/euth and Meiabotis, end than onto October and the pra-
Christmas release of Monty on ihBEun. In addition the re a re rQleeses
planned for the Commodore M, some conversions and some orig-
inals, as well as games for the CI Sand Amstrad, All of which must be
keeping GremI in Graphics very busy, and it seems that Ian is Churnts-
fng his nose et the traditional summeir slump
Obviously the sales figures that you &ch'mv^ over Christmas are
double those you achieva for the other times Qf the vear, but t think
keeping the market buoyant for the rest of Ihig year is very important.
I don1 mind getting lower saJes through the sumriier — ii keeps the
Gremlin name prominent; ftrKJl ii keeps the progrsmm-eri bu^y — ii'i
important for them to be able to work twelve months of tha year
ramer than siic and it's important for us to have revenue coming m
for tweh^e months of the year rether than six M would hate to think I
was holding product back iust for Christmas/
Looking at 'the prison there i% obviously plenty of room to
escpand, should they wish to At present Gremlin employs four full-
time in -house Z80 programmers aN wn-ting for the Spectrum^ Pete
Herrap, Chrfs Kerry, Shaun Hollingworfh and Christian Urquhart. A
company called micro Projects consisting of three pfogrimm«rs
write Gremlin's Commodore games ar>d convertioni^ and fan is
inv^tigating other talent. 1 would like to see our in-house perwannel
double this year, to a maxismum of ten. so that we have at least one
programmer who is competent on one of the mapr m»chinesp by
which I mean Spectrum, Commodore* Amstrad and Alan. That
mteans we are Ofi the look out for more programmers and more
product/
UNSOCIAL HOURS
Although the in -house team are employed fuN time, few of tt>em
work consistently at the offices- preferring to spend some time there
but more at home working. 'Programmers tend to work rather
unsocial hours end &s the time required might mean them working
ell day end then into the small hours they find it easier to work in the
comfort of their own homes. But they do come into the office at least
orKeaweek/
With this sort of working fle»ibitity. I wondered whether there was
any sense of 'team spirit'.
'Oh yes/ Ian replied instantly, 'each programmer will discuss each
• mt Qrmmiim gumm^: §mfi le r%^i. Shmin MIfiiiffiwwtfi. Kmvkt Mwltufn, IwrffvMwrt CktU Kmnw, PmtmrHmmtp mmi Ouimtimn UrqwlNHf.
CRASH Jufy 1985 29
r
A GREMLIN IN THE WORKS
CHRIS KERRY
Other's work afvd thayll discuss v^riou^ routin^t that they're ii»irig,
the g^mpplfiy eferriijnts within Ihe g^fri& and variaus graphics —
Peler Htirrap does a numbM&r of the graphics for other people, he has
a b^jnt towards designing graphics and he's very quick. The bulk of
the ideas for games come from the GFemlin office', tan continuecf,
'we have brain beshing sessions, stt down and discuss the types of
program we would like to put out — Vm the cytprii a& far as the
diaraoters go. Wh^t londs to happen is ihaf g«n#ral ideas are thrown
about and then the programmer ^oes awsy and draws up a plan of
the wiy the program con Ed work, man we discuss thai again before
the programming starts, so we end up with a sort of story t>o^rd It
works very w!3lL b^cauM you can id^niify the are^s that you could
make wirhin the program or the improvements vou can make before
It actudlly gets slarted, There's nothing worse, and i| has happened
to us, to be halfway through a program and find that sfs not going to
worh- If you had sat down and spent a little more time at the outset
y;ou would have identified all the problems and saved a lot more
time I refuse to conttnue with somethmg th^t I may not be happy
withal the end/
&efOi^e movHig into the programming room to have a look at the
new games coming alono. tasked Ian. thinking oiManfyon the Run,
whether he thought platTorm games were a played out genre. 'Oh
no. definitely not. Hopefuilv with Monry ofa fhe Run you'll see a
different element enter platform ^ameplay. We have inirDduced
some further exciting elements which I think the public will like. We
see it as a great improvement on Wanted: Wo^fy Mo/'eand I think ii
will get a bigger lol lowing/
Is he irritated when other companies try to jump on the success
band waggon of Monty Mole, or, a^ Software Proiects has suggest-
ad, thai p latf omi games i i ke Mqh ty Mofe m ju mpi ng on the suocdss
band waggon oiJet Set Wiity and m&mc MmGr^
Art ic'sWw^^fifAfo/TfvwM a direct hypeof a n umber of games. We
didn't fe«l inciined to 00 anything about the fact that they had used
'Monty' and were obviously hyping off the success of Monty Mole.
As to M^nic MfH&f ^nri Jet Set Wifiy, Miner 2043er was the first, and
a^io whet her the peo^ple that opriginatedthat program feel the same
as Software Projects, I don't know. I see no reason to diminish our
own gfcory when they've had such a nice success with txjth pro-
grams, and they are both venjj'good programs Perhaps it's a case of
eing a little bit jealous. I don't know, maybe Moniy Mofe's batter/
One thing for cenain is ihatMonfy on the Run is very much beUer
than Wiinied: Monty Mofe. The mean elements of the first game
have been made even mesn-er in the second. As Ian commonts. That
is Pete Harrap's sheer bloody >mindedn ess J f people thought the firsi
Monly was bloody-minded, they'd better look at the r>eKt onef He's
done some very funny things on it
30 CRASH July 1985
Chrig i& the bahy of the team at
16 ( 1 9 in December}, but of the
team he has the longest list of
credits to his name. He wrote his
first game at 16. It was called
Gremlins and no one wanted it.
Computers first cropped up on
the second year computer
course at school, but failed to
catch his inierest. Then in the
third year he jorned a computer
group. We just used to mess
alDNoul, but I became interested in
how they actually worked Then
the 2X81 came on the market
and I got me sister to buy me
one, and I learned to proa ram
machine code on that. Wnen the
Spectrum came out I got one
end speni a year trying to figure
oui how 10 do ihe^reen
because it's got a right weird
way of storing things. In the end.
I really learni to program by
listening to other people and by
reading ma^ajrr^es/
After writing a Ga]eKi#ntype
game, Chris turned out Jacjrdnd'
the Beanstalk which Thor
accepted and released/ It w^^n't
ven^goodr but you learn from
your mistakes. t*ie screen
pictures were good, but the
graphic movement was
terriblet'
Chris wrote two more follow-
ups 10 *M TBS, Gw^fji Re¥enge
and TheHi^us&rffstJBckSum.
AN these games teat u red heavily
and brightly coiQured
backgrounds whii^
distinguished them from ^ilmost
every other program on the
market M wasa Irademark he
kept when he moved over to
Gremljn Griiphics and produced
the second Monty game, Atcvt^
Mof0 f$ innocent,
Chris is now finishing off
MGMbo(is. which i^s a departure
graphicaHy for him. The way the
didracter is used in the game is
quite comical and there ere
what Ian Stewart calls 'some
nice, silly little touches to it/ You
Eley one of the last human
eirtjp free of the evii mfluerK^
of eliens that have taken over the
planet and are turnrng people
into monsters. You haven't
entirely escape the effet^s of
their plans, however, being a
bird with 5 still'fKiman bra^n. ft is
a g^ant, colourful maze, full of
haia rds of course, th rough
which you just ^ukle your
birdman until discovering the
potion that returns you to a
human form. Havmg once again
become human, you stHI
GREMLIN IN THE WOBH
METABOUS t
possess t ho ahiiit ID
YOU can fly as welt ii- . . - - _ c
of I he nic« m\& loiictws (s (t>o
r^fer^ncd to infamous Gremlin
cniihers, bul tKese do not kill
ymj oui right — they just flatten
yoy for b while, M&t&botis looka
like bemg the most unusual
pfogram Chris K^rry has
written.
SHAUN HOLUNGWORTH
b€rfDre compute rs took off, I
ki>ew all about ANOing and
ORing. so it didn't come terribly
difficult'
Shaun came to Gremtin
Graphics thfoygh Jusi Micro as
we^l, buying gAmes for his
Spectrum, but a friend y^ho
works m the BhtTp had alfid
worked with Ian Stewart at
Laskys, so Ihey goi lo know each
Other The ftrstjob was P^tfy
Pigeon Ofi ihe Spectrum. 'It
wasn't really a oxi version,
everyone says it was a
oonve^sion, but it wasn't. We
thought we coy Idn't replly do
the scrolling screen on tho
Spectfiim tike we did on the
CarTHTTodore, so we thoooht we
would extend the storv a Tittle
hi! )r was the first full length
y £3mes program Id ever done,
and of course. I h<Kl a fot of
things to l^arn, and Mhmk if I'd
done it now I could have made a
far better job oiit/
Shaun's technical backgroynd
ifands him m good stead when
it comes to some of the team's
programming probEems. and he
IS responsible for the d^^c
SySlom thi^y u$^ with th&
Spectrunris 'We had to convert
ail the programs whidi mream
breaking diymi tha cod^ used by
the a«4imblef3 m oetthe disc
system to run — we had that
much troyble wkhmicrodrives it
were unbelrevable/
Since he »s more inclined Co
the technical si^de of program-
ming, I asked whether he
considered the programming or
the games design more
important. The game,
(telinitely. I wake up in the
nr>ommg thinking, how om I
fioing to do this next b^t but not
rom a prog ram point of vi!?w-^
from the fma) effect, to get the
game to a standard whereby
people will really enjoy it when
Fir his pf o ject, Grumpy
Gumphr0y — Supersf^uih,
Shaun has developed a masking
technique for the moving
chaf acters so that ihey appear to
pass behmd objecis, Thrstype of
Ihing takes a lot of tesltng to get
it ngnt When you write a
routine for a certain part of a
program you must test it to the
tuJI Before going on to the nejd
one, because otherwise if a bug
crops lip you tan be in right
trou We. what s more, one part
of ^ program can interact with
a no ther pa rt a nd you can end up
with such a mess you don^t
know where you are '
Some programmers use itie
technitque ofwrUing all the
algorithms lor a program and
then sloi in the graphics nght at
the end. but Shaun prefers to
design and fit in graphics as he
goes a long The sprites aren't
as important but on Ihe screens
you've got to know where things
are. Like the Irtt buttons in
Sapersfeurh — if we wanted
them, say, in a square instead of
a lincj we'd have to rcwrrte part
of the program ro make that
happen because the program
has to know where ihe bultoftS
are for II to work '
Shflun's neM project is a 3D
version of a platform game, "lifes
Monty Mo^e m 33, but probably
not Monty Mole." Meanwhile he
H busy finishing S^jperff/etffAi,
not the f rrst ever progr am to tie
set in a Depanmeni Store
{HeHMff*S OtJtj^ir^y Ruftl but
certainly one of the mosi
fVenetic. Grumpy Gumphrey i&a
store detect rve at (not surpris^
inglvl Mole Bf others, an
estaWfshmertl witti many
departments on four floors. A
oeniral feature is the lift which
may be directed to the desired
floof by pressing the
appropriate birtlon. The lift is
actually a 'room' which sttfKb
still white the floors whiz^ past.
Shop lifters are abroad and il m
Gumphrey's principal task to
apprehend them. If he makes a
wrong decision about who it i%
fhtlHl a warning letter is issued
and after three it's thte curtains
rfept. for Gumphrey
the frenzy sets in, however,
not because of thieves but
because of aH the other jobs
Gumphrey has to do. These
inolu<$e talcing the manager his
1030 cup of tea, recapturing
gorillas escaped frorri the pet
depaiinmeftt, clearing ducks and
bugs out of the food hail, finding
lost babies I Herbert perhaps?),
fiKtng the lift witen It breaks
down, emptying the flooded
boiler room, putting out firm in
waste paper basteis and so on.
All these |obs need specific tools
which may be in obvious places
or not at all — or they may have
been stolen by shop lifters! No
wonder Gumphrey is grumpy at
times-
Ai 28. Shaun is the oldest of the
bunch. Hiss mtroduclion to
computers came Ihrough his
previous job es a chief video
technician for a cenmn TV rental
I had to know a tot
: i I logic circuitry/
s^yi uub ^Hjftly spoken native of
Sheffield, so we were taught
about micf oprooessofs long
CRASH July 1985 31
A GREMLIN IN THE WORKS
WHifi ashed his ag@, Peier
replied fiom<ewtia4 uncenainly^
'Ooh. er, ZOMhetonof a minlno
training officer, Peter stud [^ at
Sbedi^ld University and w^s
dair^ quite wel] unti) a Cur rah
MicfD&peech ur>ii decided to
d^slroy his Spectfum and thus
plunged him into a life of garrn^
design ing. Like w many other
young pfogfammersH Pete
Started v^itn 'a little ZXSr and
th^n skipped a big ZXfll by
idling somecarnera equipmeni
to buy a Spectmm. He laught
himself m«cNn« code program-
ming on the B1 and ^basicalKy
transferred that to the
Spectrum'
Unlil meeting Ian Stewart and
Kevin Norbum in Just M^cro,
Pate used to do $om^ hacking
and design programs to ajtef
existing games. His city
rede^igner for 4r7r ^^art was
sent back because Quicksilva
Told him they were already
dsvet oping something them-
selvo^; aUnough this never
e ppea red , Zombie Zombie d id
^ilow the ptayer to rebuild ar^d
change the city
Peter Harraphit Ihe headlines
(filefaliyj with hisfir&t game, the
CRASH Readers Award winner,
W^rmct: MooiyMofe A wicked
sefise of humour was apparent
in the game, and it is this angle
that is most n>oticable in the
follow up. Apart from program-
ming enljre games, Peia is
responsible for rrkeny of the
Spectrum graphics in other
GremNn games, he hes das-
gned th^ main charwzter in
^a^erSob. for instance. This
led to some ribakj comments on
Bob's suggestive style of
walking — the irrepressible
Harrap humour sometimes
verges on the — well, naughfy.
Monty on ih€ Run is the true
sucoessor to Wsnt&d Monty
Wofe Lite If a teferunner, rt is a
platform game with many and
varied elements. Per hops The
mos(^ signjfjcam is the foct That
fVlonty can now somersauH
rather than lu si jymp. When
ask«d whether the Commodoce
Bame tmpossibte Mission mighi
ave been a (forgivie the pijnl
spFingboafd^ Pete just smiled.
The story, as we know, so far:
Monty Mole, suffering from a
shortage of coa4 owing to the
miners strike, enters a mine to
steal some. After many mis-
adventures he meets Arttiur
Scargilland issentio pri^sonfor
theft. His Inend, Sam Stoaf. has
a go at rascuing him, bul fails in
the attempt, so Monty is left to
complete hit semanee Wit h
time on hia ha nds he takes to the
prison gymnasium and
Becomes super fti,, leaming to
somersault in the process. He
gets out of ^aot artd tries to flaa
to Brazil. This is wtwre the aciien
of Monty on the fian takes place,
as he boards a ship and tnes to
escape lo France. Money is of
the esMnce. and fortunately
there are gold sovereigns to be
coKecied. but in ordermrthe
ship to sail Monty has to
perform several tasks, alt of
which require the right tool for
the job. On top of that there are
hosts of malcontents trying to
stop him.
The 'ofiible 'airap has prog-
rammed in niimerous devious
trai^p some of vvhioh are so
mi nd-bogglEngly cruel it's mir^-
bogglirw. There are lifts with
nasty habits, telepon beams
which are only safe if they am a
certain ^our and some of
which can rieposiit you in a lethal
situation. Obfects to be colle<^ed
are placed m almost impossible
positions, and often, after hours
of trying lo reach them, they turn
out to be useless or, worse still
positively dangerous ^ This Is ooi
a game for the squeamish f
Peter, who is quietly spoken,
tends to a calmness that is
belied by the mischevioys
delight he takes in setting the
hapless player up for a pratfall
But I've no tioubt that thousands
wi II be queueing up fo r a custard
pie in the face oy October when
Af£infy on fb&flun is released.
CMRISTIAN URQUMARty
Chrigtian now 19 moved to
Manchester io join Ocean, and
then onio Sheffield with
GrernHn Graphics. His first
Qfogram, Tr&nsversiOf^ was a
fast grid game which Ocean
marketed Afterwards he
became an Ocean in- house
prog rammer and wo rk ed on
Hancht3ck, C^^iiion and Daley
Thompson's Decathlon. 5Jr>oe
joining Gremlin, Chrisiian has
been working on Beav^er Bob in
Dam Tfoubfe, wh ich was the
subject of a loadirtg screen
conipetition run in CRASH.
CRASH readers who visited
rwo of ZX Microbifs last year,
will probably remember seeing
Christian On the CRASH Stand,
holding court with gamestc^ra
wanting to krK>W how to win at
Hunchb&cK ar^ havi ng a
programmers' l>attle with David
Shea (Qukfcsilva freniy and
SfWwnt&n, who now works at
Mikro-Gen).
Be&verBob tn O&m Trouble is
descritied by Ian, as a game *or
Ihe sfightiv yoiinger player^
which isn't to say thai it's easy.
Above the surface of the Ffver,
stands a wooden hul with
several floors This platform
section of the game sees Beaver
Bob collecting dynamiie. Below
the surface ouhe river are the
beaver's two dams, and a secret
hideftwav where he keeps Ibod
and is able to take a breath. The
river is infested with crocodiles
which not only eat beavers, but
also steal dam J 09^ The obiea is
to replace the siolen 109s to keep
the level of the reservoir up,
whilst avoiding crocodiles,
schools of pirriana and huntir^g
s£uba dJvQf i.
32 CRASH July 1985
A GREMLIN IN THE WORKS
MONTY ON THE RUN
. & it t* =
^
l|-*W:
*--
BEA¥ERBOB
CRASH July 1985 33
CAULDRON
Producer: Palaoe
Software
Memory required: 4SK
Retail price: £7.99
Language: machine code
Author: The Ram Jam
Corp with Steve Brawvn
On a hi)l many miie^ nway there
m a qreeri doof behind which
there is a Golden BroomstJck. a
itiifig so powefful Ihat the it is
sought Bitm trf lim best and
ci^yerest withes In i*i© lanrd, tnit
on I V you amp repamd to face the
dangers that lie behind the door,
h's not that you are being p&fMc-
utarty bwm but you have rhis
spptlthai should defeat the
pow<@rs of the pumkins foom
and leave yeu. as a prize, with
the wttclies oofiSen broom .
Vo4jr %pm need^ si^c bas^
ingredients not nofmally found
on eype^rmatket shelves, in fact
they cart only be found behind
other coloured doors for Which
you writ need the coloured keys.
So^ your first task Js to find the
keys by flying on your own latty
broomstidi: round the l{>caiity.
Th-e keys can commonly tje seen
prapped up agatnsl treenail lh#t
rarriaifis is for you to larvd and
pick Ihem up. As ycru pemse the
skies you are attacked by all
manner of tttin^ Wilche^ting
batt. ctoek-scorehing fireballs,
murderous piim^ins and badty
behaved seagulls are just a few
of the hazards facing vou. Of
course youi magic deTe<nds yoy
34 CRASH July 1985
from their onslaught {wilch is to
say that your broomstick is act-
ualEy a 4.&mm Quick-fiFina can-
non) but your life fofce is deplet-
ed by as much as four or five
poinis However bv tinng direct^
ly at the attackers w^ll only cost
you on^ pQini per sho! so sirioe
each of your eight 1iv«s [Of ha^)
only have 99 points to start with
ypu really can't afford to be
flippant.
With the correa key you can
aet into any ol the caverns ah
Inough you will have to discover
for yoursell which caverns to
visiifirsf Each cavern pf«enis a
son of platform game problem
tfiat requires great skill and dele-
te rity negotiate^ When you have
reached whate^r ii m that you
are looking foi yo4j musi return
home to add it to ifte pot. After
collecting the si» main ingred-
ients you will be able to com-
pFetp thf^ apeii thai will rid the
Sand of the pumkin and win that
newbroom.
As a bonysi on the B side of
the caraeite is a Spectrum v«n>
ion of the earJlef Palace game,
The fvi^ Oesd
• 't find; the graphics in this
game very piecing but t thmk
the movement could have been
improved Rather than the
whole Screen scf oiling from one
side to anoiher as you fly^ It
sera Its in pages, as you reach the
far sJd^ of one page it rapidly
scrolls acro3.s so maf you are
baiA ofi the ot hef side of a differ^
ent screen. The *how do I get
over there* p^roblems in ihecav^
erns are very iridcy and demend
great skill. The attadking nastira
Bf^B real pain becausie there are
so many of them, even killing
thein costs energy so you reBlly
will need those Irves ti you want
to oamp4eie ttie game. Very attr-
active game, playable and I find
if fairly aiMict^v^
• Tve noihtng butpmise far this
OBme, gmphfc detit^i is m&rv^f^
has a«tf cofour ts exception&lfy
¥imN usmf Amfrmtfon is gm&t
foo. ft*S f^ot &n msygam&tymi^
m^?&ns — fiymg fhromh ths atr
se^mjE fun at ffr^i untiffemiOiOiJS
bais (v^mpifesF) f/y cofitifiuaffy
fo drag yow cfenvn. fmdmg t/w
WBtt spr^Bd snd rBnaomff
ptacmi k^s isn't bbsy mffmr,
usmg them is even worse — as
you open up one of the cofour-
coded doofs a new tinde/waride
appears, offerirtg you screerts fn
a ptatform - or sliaufd tsay 'sfep-
ping stone'- game, Tftii is even
'•-'- dffficuli rhsn rfje ^en^f
i:&$, becsu^ for ffsff &f
i^'e mne you don't know where
you'lf tend up when you step
blfndfy off one screen into
enQther. £ighf hegs might seem
a fof {^f /ivejE to you, but you
coif/d have etghty Bnd n
woukfn't be erfough A dntigM-
tut geme (her *s bm/nd m prove
popuier/
• 'Here's anoi htsf pame ihat has
been converted Irom the 64.
TTiey've had some trouble with
the conlinuatly scrolling scfeen^
but the Spectrum psge scrolling^
thuuph nowhere ne^r as altr^lfl-
iv^e, IS a reasonabla camprom-
ise. Thegraphic^ look very qood
though. Flying On your broom-
stick IS a tricky business with itie
ghosts, bats and deadly pumkin
pods all homing in on you —
don't hang about in one piaca
too long f The caverns pr»ent e
totally differ ^it game with
different problems, so Caufdron
repfesents good value in game^
Slay, erktit the goocf graphics,
ard to get to rooms, size of the
pame and difficulty levoi makes
It addictive to pisy. and with a
second free game on board,
GNwd yelue too. a^thouph £vif
ue^d isn't the most mega-fab
program/
COMMENTS
Control ken: Cap/Z left/right,
X/C dijwn/up, a^d V to fire
Joystkii: Kempslon. Cursior.
Sirtclair
Keyboard play: responsive
Use of colour: very gpQOd
Graph ics: defailacf, wall moving
Sou rtd good
Skill levels: 1
Uvea: a
gcre e n ii 64 below ground—a
lot above!
Gen^il ratifip: a larger
engeging and diffiajli game for
the arca^ player
Use of computer 80%
Graphics 8Q%
PtayabJFJtv 90%
Getting started 86%
Addictive qualities 3t %
Value fdr rtianey 90%
Overall 91%
SPECTRUM 48K -COMMODORE 64
^
A
l^'
r— m
11 J ' ■» » i'
I 1 ^^l^--'
1*?
/
ONLY
Extraordinary Arcodte Animolian
An omozli^ journey io the centre
of ttie Pteosu recto me
Discover Ihe secrets of the
ftnol screenl
FREE! FREE! FREE!
Unique LIVE recording of RELAX, never released tn the U.K.
Exclusively from iQ^qj inaggggti^ twin cassette pack.
Ocean Saftware Limited
6 C&icr^ Street Manchester Ml 5 NS.
Telephone: 061 8H6633
Oce^SolttwiifeavaiMitei honisde ctfd branches d:
HOOURlltflf .WH5MITH /^S^ .^S>•■^SKYS .
Rumbclows , <»M«r sp««n" ^»«p* «*»* P»^ «*«" '
mH«^
GLASS
PrDdueer: Quicksilva
Memory required: 4SK
Retail price: £7.33
Language: machine code
Author: Peter Ha rg reaves
Gf&sSt belt^e it or nai, m a flight
sJnrHjIslor but one designed fori
wery special task which ts to train
you (of a spec^fK; task. With The
li»d of GfAss Y<^ must acquifd
\hm skills needed to t>e a star-
fighter pilot. The problem, you
Mflp Is that the planet Hygon has
been taken ov^r by d bunch of
Ctev^F bul nasry aliens. They
have built three citadels which
act fts bases for further milrtary
expafTGion. The citadels are
heavily defended and only good
piFots stand a chance of deBiroy-
ing any ofva of thwn Ifrt alone all
three.
The sinnulalqr has been des-
ipnad to test your abiUties to the
limFt as you must destroy hun-
dreds of droids before you even
catch sight of a city For most of
the time the action lakes place
on the planes of Hygon which is
a pretty bonng sort of place to
be, rnostty because th^ surface
te reflective, flat and tfevoid of
just about anything eKcepf- of
course, the droids. You are
Qcing to mee^ three n^ain typ^
ot droid. the first are sproingy
bouncy ones, you know the sort,
they never wem to sit ^iill long
enough for you to kill them, but
you must if you are to avoid
being killed yourself. The sec-
ond €ia« of dro4d appears to be
patrollrng a boundai^. in herds.
They mafch, relent less iy. from
one side of your view-screen to
theothef happih^ lobbing tennis
balls at yoii, only these bails do
nasty thrngs to shieJds The ism
breed of droid is bigger bui less
bold, they ccwer over the hor-
i20n and then pop up and fire at
you.
The simulator has rwo other
hazards for you to cope with.
Firstly you are given practice
shooting up enemy ship^ ai
they Sidle post your view-
screen. SecorwJly, you exper-
ience the thrill of flyina across
the less boring parts of tty^on,
at low level and at hi^h speed.
The simulation gives the
appearance of traveling, on a
high speed Fty-mo across a we^v
large graveyard complete with
highly coloured grave stones
When you collide wiih one of the
'headstones' your shield sutlers
damager Many eNen deaths later
yiHi reach the first cptadel and a
nuclear warhead 4s taynched
against it automaiicalEy. letting
you sf! back, relax and watch the
ipectacular &ml of one of the
OitJm. But not for long, one
down two more to go.
You're equipped with twin
rapid fire lazers. centred on the
screen so aiming is done liy
moving the crafl from side Id
36 CRASH July 1985
side Poiinits are swarded for hit*
ting enemy targets and the firirt
20pUM} are hard work, after
which the bonuses are generous
and top scores can weTl go into
the millions. A score such as that
would earn you the highest title
of 'Game Lord' but more often
than not early missions wilJ attri-
bute less flatiefing ranks to you
like 'Galactic Dustman' and
'Commodore Owner'. There is
an infinite liv^ option but
scores from each mission are
not cumulative — you can't be-
come a Game Lora by cheating
you know I
CRITICISM
• 1 am very impressed with the
praphicSp I hey bw very attract-
ive, very smooth and delightfuL
To be hones I the game itself ts
rea II y not hi no nrho re tha n a shoot
em up but wnat's so bad about
that? The sourKl is almost up to
the standards of the graphics so
that helps to make it exciting, as
rio the huge variety of alien be-
ings — seldom will you see ttie
same cfea tyre twice. In between
«>r^f|jcts with the aliens your
craft passes through a most
alluring transition, best descr-
ibed as a journey by a slice of
hiph speed cheese through the
middle of a sandwich maciQ with
chequered bread. One scene
reminds me of 3D D&^ih€h0$&
but much faster so it's quite thril-
ling. My only reservation is the
price, I admit the graphics Am
superb but It iaa little sleep/
• ' This g&m0 is {nsmmfy ^ppMi-
mg m me sens^ thst everythmQ
is graphicaffy 'hsf &nd fmrfy
detsiied But thete didrt't sjj^m
to i>e much of a game io it Var-
ious sequences nave some nfce
effects a/?4 '" f^^ main, rhe
gam^i is bui/t up of effects — (he
warp etiact is fhm best /Ve ^een
.$
I 1
p 1
on the Spectrum. Speedmg
ihrough the itm/sfs is ififficim
because they come lowafds you
at sucb & rat^ and the Jfey ms-
ponses don't matcf} that mie^
which adds a bit to the forward
ihmkfng. Artother nice touch fS
that you can continue with your
game from the point at which
yoi/ weie kitfsd. As a gam& f
canl rM% r&comm^nd it, aA
though if you 're tnto effects, it's
ntce to see wh^t can be dor^ and
if gets very f^sr '
#
• ' I enjoyed pleyirig Gi&ss as it
didn't gel boring The graphics
were so varied that I only saw
each type of alien once. The
sound was well used and gave
the game a bit mora <fepth< the
graphics apart from being very
vanedwere ver^ well drawn and
per^ctly animated and all the
30 efhycts wo Fked very we 1 1 . As a
shoot em up Glass is very addic-
tive and playable, in fact I only
have one main niggle and that es
that you don't have sighls for
your paser so you c:an only guess
what you are going to hit J play-
ed it all the way through, {it took
about four hotirs to complete)
and the final screen was well
worth it'
COJHAfflVrS
COfT^ol keys: 0/P left/right, ZM
to fire
Joystick: Kempsicm and Sinclair
Keyboard F^y : very fast
Ui« of colour: exceHent
GnaptiJcs: varied, large and fa^.
very good
Sourd; agreeable
SklMlemft:1
Uvw:3
greens: 3 main types
Ger^ral rating: graphically an
excellent and very pleasir^
shoot em up.
U se of CO m puter 75%
Graphics 92%
Playabilitv 82%
Gettlrt^ started 85%
Add i cti V e qua! it j os 60%
Value for rtwriey 68%
Overall 82%
48K SPECTRUM
3
\->
i^iifSh
WENDER
BENDER
Produeer: Ranks High
M e mo ry requ i red : 48K
Retail price: £7.50
Language: machine code
This ^ime w^s revie>t^ed way
back in issue 9 under the name
Wock Busters A rather sad story
is associated with tt. When iht
aythor originally eppltdd fof a
Ikence lo use (he name he rath
ar 90! the imprci^ion that it was
not nMded, but the owners of
the name must have changed
their mind$ N-C^u^e 8 hey Qfant-
^ rights in it to an associate of
the author who then was able to
claim that only he had the right
to use the if tie of the TV prog-
ramme. As a result. Ranks High
changed the name to W&nd^r
dencw/- , which is subil^ntiaMy
the s^m^ as the ^uthop's orif^ih^i
game wuh a few differences
First ty the blocks have been
Changed from the fisi honey-
comb shape to a more accept
able 'W shape. Another
improvement incorporated into
this release is the avail ability of
additional question tapes — an
e»cffa one is already ir^tuKted
wrth the program i(satf and
others are avalud^le for 0.60
Most peopYe are probably
famiiiiar with this sort of game
The main display shows a block
ol 25 Ws arranged 5 by 5 Each
node has a letter m ji and the
questions are based around that
letter. For eKampte a player ask^
ing for the block with letter H
may m\ 'What ft is a coniost of
speed': anavrar 'ftace'. Not ^i\ of
thequesttonsare aseasy a$ that,
in fact the quEi is a good te$t not
only of gei*teral knowF^dge but
of spelling as we^l since the ans-
wers must be spelt correctly
when thsy afe irMJot.
At the start of the game you
can select e two-ptayer game or
one player can pit wits with the
FRANKENSTEfN
CRmCISM
• 'frankensl^m Z006ha% rather
nice colourful and smooth
graphics. The program also hss
a neat sense of numour with
Frogs in the thmat, cigs in the
lungs and fried eggs in the stom
ach. This IS a game to wofk out,
damage is easiiy accumulate
and not so quickly repaired,
oKygen is also a precious com-
modityr To do weH you must
move quickly and accuratef^^y, so
expect the nrst few pames to
end in death pretty quickly. Icon
have come up with a good game
here, t enj^oyed it'
• *Wh&t 3 strange g^nw fft/s i$, a
mufti'pi&tform ar^sd^ arfvpn
fare (touch of} ^fi f&kmg pfme
wtih ^ humsn body. Th^/e ar^
fats cf€t0^w^i id&as withm th&
gsm^ iike <to<fging frogs m the
fhrost and shooting oxygen
t}a6f^f^s for mom air. The sound
coufd have bm? improved but
ii's alrigfft. The graphcs therf}-
sety&s are v&ry smooth With a tot
of deiad Keyboaftf piay is ^ery
msponsfve whfch fs/usi ss wef(
r/ws game ts worth a too* as ii
represents preffy good vBtoe. '
• ' I thought the route round the
body was a little str&nge, you
start m the throet dowr^ to the
lungs. Stomach, intestirre^ and
then you go beck up the heart
and finish up in the brain. While
the graphics worked well i wa$ a
little di^appoirvted with the
sound simoEy t>ecau5e there was
so kittle of itp when you collide
with a nasty all you hear is a min-
ute ticking nor$e wh^ch is easi^
lost Sound aset^ this game
does require skilful I p^ay, mostly
38 CRASH Julv 1385
beeauta of ttte limits imposed
fay the oxygen mnd damcige
levefs, also it has quite a lot of
variation from screen to screen.*
COMMErdTS
Control keY^- Q^A up /down, 0/
P left/rjght, space to fire
Joystick: Kempsion
Keyboard play: good response
Use of colour: very good
Graph iq?: f^sl and smoolh
Sound: pretty pOOr
Skill levetoM
Lives: depends on damage and
OKygen level
Screens: 10
Gerteral rating r a better than
^vernge g>ame,
Use of computer 69%
Graphics 80%
Playabilrtv 80%
Gettinp started 78%
Addictive qualities 79%
Value for money 75%
Overall 76%
computer. The colour selected
by a piayer dictates whether he
or she tries lo form a lirw of Ws
from lop to txittom of the
screen, or from left to right. For
every correct arkswer you ^ive
the associated node turns into
the colour of -^iXir side. Whoever
answered the lotft qyestton corr-
ectly will get first ca^ on the
next. Since the obiect of the
gam« imto try and form a bndige
of nodes between the two sides
one woufd nontislly pick letters
that are adjacent to each other
but you could block your oppo^
nent instead. Tt* computer
keeps a score for both players
ano alfows a game for as mar%y
matches as you please.
CRmctsm
• Ifm new layout of ihe main
scfeen Is In fact a great rmprove
nwnt over the oW. it's much
deerer er\d easier lo read as weil
^ beino a good deai brighter.
The addition of eittra question
tapes makes a good deal of
sense since you couJd get bored
if you had to cope with the sarrw
old ones doinp the roHunds tim©
and time again. In essence the
9^me is much the same to play
as Bhck Busters but It is much
more refined. Quiz g.emM liav«
a strange son of appeat erid I
think that for those who enjoy
Ihem Wender B^ndt^r is prob-
ably the best generai knowledge
quiz game on the merkei. I em
mildly concerned that every
now and then when a two line
question is printed the last few
characters tend fo drop off until
the time up bell is heard. This
can make some questions next
to impKTssibSe bur »s I say that's
pretty rare, Al\ in all a weEl
Itioughlout and nioely produced
gemA, v^ll worth consnlering.'
COMMENTS
Control keys: very simple
Joystick: Hi A
U^ of colour: neat arvd bright
Graphic: much improved But
&tiU with Sfwcfrym text
Sound^lois of bieeps an d a ve rv
swemiimo
Skill Iflv^: nir>e
Lives: t4/A
Screens: N/A
Gerwral rpHrig' interesting and
entertaining, well produced.
U se of com puter 7 1 %
Graphics 77%
Playabilitv 75%
Getting started 77%
Addictive qualities 73%
Value for nnoney 75%
Overall 78%
:)!»
l£
litii
48K SPECTRUM
sid!!^
SUPER-
GRAN
Producer: Tynesoft Ltd.
Memory required: 48K
Retail price: £9.95
Language: machine code
Not thai CRASH readers get
mucti opponunily lo watch tflie-
vision but you moy hwm m^ticed
a Tolevision seri^cAllttd 'Super
Gran'. It is b^sfld on the untikely
adv&ntyres of a turtxi charged
Grandmolher. The story began
wh#n she was siCltnp in the
house feeding something when
she was accidefitly zapped by a
siiecial ray fired ffom the up-
stairs room of a tenamenl btodk.
The ray was in The care of one Mr
Skunnef Carnpben. the bad guy
of the gaiTie Skunner in his turn
had pinched it frorn Professor
BliCkp thi rev'^ mvenlQi.
Anyway enough of this, Uie fact
f^ tN«ii the otherwfM quiet and
feebly Granny was InslantEy
converted intq a megabemg
able tojperforfn feats that n^aka
Datey iTiompsofi look Mke our
assJstar^t editor. The game is
basred on th« dear old lady's
adventures, her anefnpts to put
right wrongs where no Gran has
righted wrongs before.
The g^me consists of five diff-
erent game-screens and you
musl sufvfve each part to move
onto the next. First off, Gran flies
over Chisleton on her flycycje,
battling it out with an irnposler
Qran on a simrlar rnachirke^
Screen Two sees you equipped
with an antigravily belt which,
when airtivated, allows you to
drift up. Turn it offend down you
flo again. You niu^t $top cars
funning over the cats while at
the sarne t\mB dw:faing planes
and balloons Gran can move
left or right, but only when hov-
ering, the background scroliing
behind her.
The third ggme uses a scrol-
ling road. The Professor is trying
to get his new invention to the
science e)chibitJon and your task
is to guide him there, avoiding
the pot hofes and kerbs ts you
speed along the winding way —
of course Skunner is makirig e
nuisance of himself. Onto the
fourth — here you rriusi sc^ife a
cliff to recover the invisibiltty
machine left at the top Moving
from ledjpe to ledge, you find
yourself facing all Sorts of perils
— weat^ ledges., nasty animals
and the like Mr Skunner hm
pone to the ma^ive expense of
hi ring a heif copter from v^ich
he drops bombs on you. On top
of alf this ihe tide's coming in so
don' I dally ^f vou manage to get
hold of the machine then its
powers may help to defeat the
mob on the ruext screens, all of
which follow similar themes-
40 CRASH July 1985
Sup*mmMm Uii't t€H>king too good ^or Qrmn. Trmppmd inmn
iiti'attfmctivm hhatcky Imnd^cmpm^ no wonder shm ffomdTmnmnU-
grmv tmft
CRITICISM
# 'And I thought tho day^ of low
resolution graphics wer^ dead'
This game has managed to
revive them for use in some of
the screens Super Gmn is fofl-
owing the hnes of the more
feebJe TV/film fip offs. it will be
the rmme that sells this game.
Thank God ihe sound can be
turned off it nearly drove me
round the bend. The keyboard
response was less than brilliant
es|>eda4lv when trying to fire. I
had hoped to find ^illy Connolly
on the B side but no, what a
£hifne. something like that Ib
desperately needed to put some
iFfe into this expensive package/
# 'W&fl here wse go wifh yel
af7othef TV Sfiin &ff^ 'Sup^r
Gmn ' is a prMf^m/fie th^i t am
uftfsmiiiat wiih so p^th^ps tsm
uftabie to 0ppr^iM0 th& game
fiiiiy. White th^ variow^ arcade
games are chaffenging and the
game is piayahfe f found rhai ft
was not adaiclivG and f am not
sure that kftowmg the TV prog
ramme wou/d have helped On
the whofe then a fatr^y ordtnsry
iiame and certamtY nothing to
Alt over abouL'
# 'I hate it. If you enjoy badly
drawn and frustrating gaines
then this is for you but I would
rather forge! 1 had ever seen il.
What annoys me most of all is
the price, I mean f^,9SI Whetofi
eanh do they think they areselh
i ng here , TV a i r tfcme ? It i s not |ust
the price that makes the graph-
ics seem so bed: while there arB
some ecceptaMy well drawn
Images that manege to move
smoothly, the backdrops are
ludicrous I've seen better
graphics in Sno^^&fl The open-
ing screen is typical the fly-
cycles are goocj except they are
^Q huge there is virtually no
room for them to manoeuvre. I
have found a way of making
sure thai you win the first
screen. Posi^tton yourself in the
centre of the screen aniii fire
rapidly left and right, that way
you are certain to hit the targets
mf ore they get onto the screen
fully. Good playirq lip ya, well I
have a much bener one^ Don't
bother.'
COMMENTS
Control keys : 0/P lett/ri g ht, Q/A
up/downn Space to fire, also
user definable
JoystitHi;: any
tCeyboird play: poor response
Use of colour: borins ena flii
Graphics: m somecdfM vify
poor
Sound: aw*ut
Shifl tevels: 1
Lives : 4
Screens : 3
Gener ai ratins: wasie of money.
Use of computflf 80%
Graphics 46%
PlavabilitY 48%
Gettinp started 67%
Addictive quafrties 4S%
Va lye for mo ne y 1 5%
Overall 43%
WIN A
PORSCHE 924
tor cash equivalent)
S0C(.1.1<":*.?i:M<)«-'l,».!h
TAKE THE CHALLENGE
_ • — _
- • m *
nrr5c
BCr^d
BEARER JH»
:-!
^«|
«i^M
i
ITh oHglAiiMfiiKlitrt «i lliili fimnii frltndljr rmlr . Sfiif^ilngtirT eiiftl h«
io ttit tvrrh wtoi if i Mlk
\
•^,
The Grenilifi master enjoys his computer entertainment just as much as,.^
helpers havt devised this classic collection that'll guarairtee hours of ftuy^i
Colour, Oirt$tanding« Graphics and tots of intrigue are the features bj|
I reputation for quality soft^^^^
1j5o when vou im y attdpny ttat your keyboard, follow the
^ "^^^k fingers over a Gremlin s|
m AvailablCTfrom all iiood soft
n HHd upoA ■ mtf ttJOAii filrytiilt In wlildl Ttai. i
^ta 1 fU«i99 Imd. i tend ruMd ^ i mM litfig nd
itaforra t dtiClny to wtn iht Iwirt oT tfM iMaimt
«i nil of t}^ wftch Anptf kinq
.^ luing h» ]i#tt and uriile «tfkti«fi w^ ovffworli, em Gnjmfjy Ginnphre)
fktrk iton d^Ktlv*. Md dOfWn hli pwltltin kn m» 4&pmtimm vise*
A liindl asMiiit it mt^tA to twlp nwrai'up thi tmvm, OQt tf^ gnnif j
tAd tUy ttot wmfmm mm Id you m tht bllP
WHERE IS HE HOW?
MOHTY'S (
OH
RUH
TTtf yiidira«fld an ndyHig roumtf to Mp cUi innomit ftHUiPfii tttroM off um
;40vit If op^imskHi iM ftod i Mw tfi bfi i sunnlir dkttit*. ivt t«i«fi tlw Iwrt Mit ficrvti c^n
9jnd b« bttriyfMj «id MonQ rmiit vurftei it totne tinii on tia ^rn«ir to tiii diani!^
bodygyird*' ind i N^h prtod l&t nf ni«v|» they irt .
IW
^one else that*s why fie anil ill team of specialist
I" iMl absorbing challenge fron ymtr computer. Skill,
^ wbich the Gremlin master haftestablished his
■4n stoAists.
and
your
M
Become the hunter
I
I
n^
I
I
«iLiiMr
A
A
and burn iread on ihe itrceii
u>tciiiiM4ai4
UJNMOiHlfllM
AMIIIIAD
I Ocean Scftviorc b avatUile from sekKtcd bnnhtA of
I MfDOUHMm.WirsMllM.^
^^^nSM. LASKYS Rumb«lowf C0M0T,
Ocean Software
OceanHouK 6G>nmlSineet
Mandiesusr M2SNS
Ct^^%^
ROBtN CANDY and LLOYD MAN GRAM patch
up their grievances and work together to
bring you this month's CRASHBACK on the
highlights of issue 8
GAMES REVIEWED
Match Poifit St^ge Cowh
BLACK HAWK
CremJve Sparks
The tifn« ii in tti« future, th«
place is a group of heavilv
defend&d islands. You fly your
Bf&ck H£wk aircraft ana your
missJQn fs to sedic and deitfoy
ihe ^nemy airffeldt and rriissil^
Iffunohinu ttitM. The Cask is
made a If the harder by ranks^
ar^ti- aircraft guns, helicopter
RunshipS plus rti#n^ pther
ii ngs that oitlv appea r i f you gel
to a certain pokH in th@ game
Your aircraft has a computer
attack ay^am which faaturos a
two acraefi display — the
defefice screen and th^ attack
screen. In the attack screen a
snnan yellow U at rha tK>ttom
indicates vertical position and a
white cross sjght may be moved
over targets. When this sighL
gOMi rad a missile is automatic
ally flred towards il to detonate
The largat. This can be used to
destroy ground instate ationi,
lanlcs and riyingtifgeis. If a tank
or a flying largM or an enemy
missite reach the base of Itie
screen the computer automatk-
aNy switches to the defence
screen On this screen yoy can
adually see yoyr BlaCK Hawk
aircrift, which is at the base of
the screen, and you rmut
destroy the on-oomlnQ Hiamlas
Witf^ your cannon faeifora they
get you Success at this returns
you to the attack scr&an.
9t%
I
At the end of a mission yoLi are
given an Optimum Target
Percentage Figum (OTPFJ. this ts
calculi»ted by now many enemy
installations you have success^
fully destroyed. If this percent-
age is high enoygh then you wiH
be given additkinal weaponry.
This can al^o bo removed tl on
your nejct mis$ion your percent-
age isn't h^gh enough.
At the lime Black Hawk was
released ix was a very good
shoot em up but by today's
standards n seems to be just
above average. The graphics
while they do ilieir job aren't
perfect but the sound is still
reasonable. Bfsck H&wi^ is still
quite eddiciiveand as with most
other shoot em uf» it is instantly
playable but for me it just seems
a bit dated- if you really like
shoot am ups then it's wofth
buvinq, otherwise you mcght as
well $tick to Moan Cr^^sta.
RC
B lafA Hawk is sM o^e of rAe test
shoot &fn up* ground m my
ppmion, OkSY, the graphn^
aren't ffte b^st in fhe worid but
ttw^ p»m& is so addiclfvs you
don f mmd Th^ bfffg&st
advantage Black Hawk hm over
many oiher garrws fS that it is
insiant/y playatts and what's
mom d doesn't trear off after a
wftife. The sound fS quite good
especm^iy the Wfie at the end of
a bombing run. Overaft stilf a
good shoot err? up whkh makms
an m/oyabfe a/tBmafive to afi
those arcade ad¥ieniures and
piaifprm g^mes.
MICRO OLYMPICS
Database
Micro Ofympks fs an adaptation
of the wel^ known arcade game,
Track and Field'. There are It
events to choose from, 5 rur^
ning events, whrch include lOD,
200, 400, 800 and 1 500 metres, 3
ihrowing events, [avelin, discus
and hammer and 3 jumping
events, long jump, high jump
and pole vault.
The running events are
controlled in the usual manner^
by waggling the joystick left to
right. In each running event you
wmpeie against the computer
&nd the ctock . Mc^t of th e events
r#auire three keys lo tm defined
beiore siarting. The computer
goes first On m the field events
10 show how it is done, you then
take part to see if you can beat
Ihe computer and create a new
world record.
MrciTO Ofympics was the finrt
good Track and Fre^d' game on
the Spectrum, all the previous
efforts seem to feature borjrig
little Slick men as the main
characters. The graphics tre
quite poor but they do serve
their purpose. Sound is also
poor but coliisur is used quica
well. The game has a few nice
fealures. try reteasmg the
h^nimer or discus at the wrong
(Rob) Most of the ratings should
go down by about TO — 1S%,
except perhaps the use of
computer and playability which
should go down by about 5%.
This game hasnl survived ttve
lesl OT time at aJI well, ( ihink thai
its graphics tet it down the most,
otherwise a reasonable shooi
em up,
jUoyd) I dlsagrea, only itia
graphics rating should go down
By about 10% the lesi can stay
the same. It is st^ll very enpy
able and definitely worth
buying.
moment. If you like 'Track and
Fi4i(d' games it rs not really
worth getting Mfcro Olympfcs
now because it is very da^ed.
RC
When Micro Olympics was fifsf
re/eesetf we hadn't been treated
to the ^^nd^rs ofth^ track-and^
fiefd-destroy- your-keyboard
type games before and this was
gufta rrovaf, for its tima it lAms a
pnMy {feceni game, that
graphics were weii aAowv
average and the ammatiQn
CRASH July 1985 45
^^sfugt
qwt& g<H^^ tt Micro Olympics
W9S fJBwdsmtfWwffMrii would
gBt a tmsiitm f&c^ptkm from the
reviewers b&caase tt fooks v&ry
tacky whef7 cornpar&d against
tod&Y^s crmam at the ^i?mes,
a/though f/>ff cDhur is Qun& w&fi
used. Thm is ce^Bin/y noi
sddkiive b&CBuse H doesn't
hmm # proper sc&ring system
/fk& Daley's Decathlon so there
^re no goals to aim for The
pJayabftffy isn't too bad but the
qame soon tosas its appeal
uveraft a pram riirf-of'the-frifll
game by todays standards.
(Rob) Most of the ratjnrgs should
QfO down by aboui 10% or more
except perhaps the Gettirhg
Started and Use of Computer.
Overall Micro Ofympics is quite
dated now but for its tfme it was
very good.
(Lloyd) Vm dfra^d I have to agnM
with Rob fo r 01106 i is I N is 1 h« end
of an era?} Mtcrv OiyrtipJcs is rio
loiigef woitfi fortcino out fof.
into being automatically except
in the frnal s^t when play con^
inues untH one player has at
lea§i & two ga^m^ lead Scoring,
changing ends and sen/ice ^W
follow ihe accepted fui&^ of
tewn tennis^
The garrba can be conironed
tiy either keys or joysticks, the
fire burton being used to serve,
to change racket swing and hit
the bati The height of the bali
and its speed are deiernnined by
how the ball is hit and with what
swin>9.
Match Point was incredibly
advanced for its lime, it stMl out
shines many of today's sport$
simulations- The gfaphic$ amd
animation of the players and the
ball are superb, the only niggle
being on firs! pEayJng the game
you ler^ to think there are two
balls because of the shadow.
There isn't much sound but you
get ao engrossed that you forget
all dbou^ \l. Quite a bit of $ki\\h
required to gain KjII control over
your cha raider hut as with all
games practice nnakj« perNKt. If
you lifae apom simutonons thon
this is certainly worth buying.
nc
MAWH POINT
Psion
Match P&int is a 3D teinnts
simulatioit that can be played
with one or two player$. The
view of the green court is from
the commenlator's bo>(. At the
tMk of the court is the score-
board showing all the relevant
details about games pS^lB and
matches. On the right hand side
of the court is the umpire and on
eilhef ^ide of the rwt ara the bail
boys.
me ga-me ck>$ely foltows the
rules of iawn tennis, a match
being played over three or five
selsandtlie winner winning two
01 three sets respect iveiy. Vou
must win at least 6 garnet and
have a two game lead to win a
let^ It both pi ay em win six
ganrte^ then a tie bre&k combes ii
Match Point fs THF tennis
Sfrnufation for the Sp^trum.
£ven by today's standards ft is a
very g€md game. The gmphics
are exce/lenr and put many
recer^l/y rateasad simulations to
shame, tt takes a white to get
uS0d to the w^y you control vottr
chamcter tat once you have
sossad it out it becon^as Quita
isasy. Addictive quaff ties are
quite hard to /udge on sports
i^imuf^uons of this kindttacause
you ^n pf&y two ptayar garrfas
whfch means that you can
a/ways have ptenty of comp-
etition but if your opponent t$
usehss 0t the game then you
STAGECOACH
Cmative Sparks
The driver of th# San Pedro
stage coach heis b^n shot! The
ob}ect of the game is to get the
stage coach under control
collect the stranded passengers,
steer a safe rotite through the !
treacherous Sierra Feligrosa
mountains while collecting the
potd. avoid the Comanche
india-ns and fir^lly arrive at the
small mining town of Sdn Pedro
The first stage, called the
S' ^mp, has you riding behind the
an Pedro stage coach and you
must ride up behind it and climb
on board. Once on the roof you
must crawl to the front and grab
the reins. With this done you
must stner through the deseft
avoiding cacti and pid^cing up the
waiting pessefifiansH If you fail to
pick up a pasMnger they wiil
jump up and ctown angrily or
mountains without receiving
too much damage. You must
pick up the bOKes of Gold or
pmrriunition while avoidir^g the
deadty rock atida«. AH maM
detaifs an be aeefi on the map
facility.
The last section is all on the
indian plains. The indiens go
into a formation that hems you
in whJIe another indian attempt
to climb onto the back of your
coach to either kidnap or>e of
vour passenger? ot yourself.
Your only delerK^ is to climb
onto the stage coach's roof and
tr^to shoo! the tndrans.
StAow Coach never actually
grabbed me when it was fir^t
reteased, l<ooking at it now I'm
not surprised. The graphics area
bit smatl for my Tiking though
there is quite a bit of detail Both
colour and sound are used we^l
but for me the game isn't eddi^*
ive enough, within a couple of
evan worse — you m ay run over
themf
OniCe enqugh passengers
have been picked up the game
nxjves on to the rwxt stage, the
Sierra Peligrosa mountains-
Here you steer through the
angetbofodofit Ofcourw yo4i
cart play against the computer
but it is on/y a matter of time
before you can beat it on the
harder ievefs of p/ay Match
Point should go down as one of
the Spectrum cl&ssics, it is a ptty
that Psion dof't miaase more
games-
jRob} Looking at the ratin^g now I
am tempted to put the Use of
Computer up by about 6%
bacayse you can cater for most
toystic^ with user definable
jeys, I am also tempted to put
the Overall up by about 2%
because I think it is a great game
that is weN wor^ buying.
(Ltoyd) I wouldn't quarrel with
the ratings at ail. Match Point m
simply a classic I
games it is possible, on the
lower levoEs. to get near to com-
pletion. OveralF a pretty bad to
average game today^
RC
f/mmmm, this i$ a bit of a irfcky
game to judga, the graphics era
poor by today's standards but
strsngeiy enough it is ^urte
pfayabte ^nd kept m0 amused
for a whfie. As wtth many g^mes
the idea may be good but tf>e
imp/emantation suffers^ norm-
aity because th^ graphics aren't
good enoiiffhr Of the thr^ee
stages the first and fast are prob-
abfy graphicatty the better and
the more piayabte of the three^
the mountam stage fets tfw
ff#me down tmmm\do^sfy, I
found the game quite ptayabfe
for a white but tdanl think i wift
toose any steep over it To ^um
up; not ^xactfy good but / fiave
seen a fot worse, iet's /ust say
'overage'.
LM
(Rob) Most of the ratings eKcept
the Use of Computer and
Getting Started should go down
bv about 10% especially the
Addictive Qualities, which
should go down by about 15%.
(Lloyd) I agree (this is getf ing to
be a habit! L Stage Coach does
become tedious after a white
and isn't really worth buying un-
less you've played it before end
know you like H.
46 CRASH July 1S8&
/
/
1
^Itfljt^
JACK
CHARLTONS
MATCH
FISHING
Producer: Alligata
Memory required: 4fiK
Retail price: £6 J5
Language: mostly BASIC
Author: Elliot Gay and
David Thorpe
This is a pretty unconvenlronal
game by any standards, the
player cloes not play againsl the
computer bul against felEow
beings, ihe more the bene? .
Ttm program stmulates a day
out rriatch fishing beside a very
attractive lake. (Dfewn by David
Thorpe see issue 17). The gamis
caters for up 10 eight fish^r^
persoi^s all of whom mu^t enter
their n^mes ai the start nhje
computeF will ask how for long
you i^ant the match to last and
you can select any |>eriod be-
tween 1 and 90 mmuies. The
prog ram ngicf allocates each
player a peg number and descr-
ibes in detail the conditions of
tba bank and surroundirig
watefs For example, ihe playef
who draws peg 7 ts told Ihet his
section has two large trees adj-
aconi to him and the water,
which is only between seven
and twentv feet deep. ha$ a lot 0I
leaves ar>d l^igs on the surface.
To a fehefperson I $ijppo$e that
thi$ would suggest the u&e of a
luminous hook and a torch but
whatever tat^kle you decide on
you must choose the most app-
ropf rate from the Tackle &wtion.
You are offered a choice of
mdSp floats, reels. Imes. baits
and hooks. At this stage you
mutt specify the type of ca^t —
strong, medium or weak. Whan
all of Ihe players have selected
what they assume id be the
most appropriate rackle we can
move onio the actual fishing.
A page of ir^tructions ex pl-
ains that all of the contestants
must gal her round the r^m^
puter. They will t>e sbown a
picture of the lake with the efght
pegs around rt. When a player'^
peg flashes 1^ means thai a fish
has t^ken the bail and ihe plaver
whose peg it is must dash to the
computer and press the approp-
riate number to striker The pic-
ture changes to show a litrie
chap silting on the bank with a
fish moving Towards the line,
when it reaches il you press
SPACE end hope that the lackle
you selected is up 10 the fish you
are iryjng to catch At any stage
during the wait you can ask to
see your p^ description arrd
change tackle if re^u ir ed .
Ac the end of the time period
the results are displayed: Each
player's name ia printed 10 the
48 CRASH July 1985
screen in an ordet dtoendent on
^e Tota) weight of frsh caught.
Displaying the total weight of
fish caughi neatly avoids those
t r^ditiu na I , arm a ou 1st rel ched
argumenis about the ones that
goiaway
CRITICISM
• 'ftshtng has got to be orte of
the mosc difficult ^poris to simu-
late an<} I think this program
manages to capture ihe tactical
and technicat aspects rather
well The view of the pool is sup-
erb and it's quite fun iusi to sit in
front of il and relax. The graph*
ic^ of Ihe fisherman on the river
bank are {forgive me) another
SILLV WARNING
Please don' t take You r S pact rum
near Ihe water^s edge^ it could
prove harmful and may be
dangerous.
COMMENTS
Control keys: 1 to 8 and space
Joystick: N/A
KeybciaFclfilsv: WA
U§m of mioitr: ven^ good
GrapM^: superb view of the
lake, others indifferent
Sotiml very little
Skill levels: 1
Uves: N/A
Screens: 2 effectively
General rwltng; an tnteresting
game with probably limi^ted
apfaeal for those who prefer
maki:nQ a bt of rvoise on the river
bank Ral 1 ngs from a f ishe r-
person's viewpoint.
U %B of CO m puter 66%
Graphics 75%
PlayabflFty 60%
Getting started 70%
Addfctive qualities 60%
Value f o r money 65 %
Overall 74%
kettle q\ fish — a little on the
simple Side but they are colour-
ful and effective enough. The
blurb thai came wilh the game
stressed the importance of a
group of players rather ihan iust
one or two- On the whole an
interesting and well designed
program,
ft *The game rTmrwg&s to be
guile reahstic. You are toid f/>e
condtiionsoffourpeg mcfudtng
deifft^ of w&t&r sp&^ &nd fight
anrf if rf^ere any weeds About.
WMe I &m mlsf&sied in ftshtng t
do not consider myseff sn expert
but the g^me cert^infy ^eefn^d
to pose assort 0fprodfem$ that
i^ny rrmtch fishennan wou/d
h9¥e to face, imerestmg tor
^ng/ers/
HOW THE RATINGS WORK
IMPORTAATT CHANGE! 1 1
After more than a year of
maintainir^g the CFIASH
rertinp systom, we have made
one irripo riant altefalion. The
OVERAUL raring m no Ipngtr
calculated asi a strM «v«^^»g!i
ol lb« prevlmji S rflfings
Now each reviewer <s md^-
endient^^ allowed to judge
the Overall worth of a gan^e
as a s«paritv rating. We
hope this wfjl helpovercoftie
some of the inconsistencies
whicJi readers have noted m
the past.
OVERAiL PERCENTAGE is
now a separate and distinct
rating. ALl ralings are an
average of thfee reviewers'
opinioris.
ynd«riQ% -iWB«|serf tinie
31-40% — Banflrally poof but
m^ mpm^i 10 mme
4%46% — tok^w svwign to
%im% — fHSonsbIa avsrat* ^
y^rT^etVpeafiJo^vd
i&40% — sbaveatfcfaga togoed
i1-74% — good on mdst counn,
get^ralFy /eiJ^mmenclKl
71-40% — very gotxt rseei^
rnendfNJ
S1-e9% — cficeflllir^f
Abova ao% - a dVkSH Smmvh,
wofdsfaiJ.. .
I
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Now YOU can fly with the
legendary Red Arrows -
in the most challenging
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ll'i the moitt exciting flightslinuJiitormwj
written foi a home computer - the product of
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Britain s top program mers. enthusiastically
aidral by th« talents of aircraft designers*
Be a VIP visitor
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Ewryone who buys a Red Arrows computer
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home of the Domfcuste/s. Your uimt witl indude two
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you are at Scampton you wiU be trwited to sit at
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Now on sale at:
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You start by practising take off$ and landings.
Then, once you have won your wingji, you fly Iti
fonnatiort as part of the Red Arrows team.
There's no margin for enror as you fly a mere six
to 10 feet from each other - at speed i of
t>etween 30D and 350 miles an hour!
But the real drama begins as you plunge into
the deathniefylng mam^euvr^ that have
been thrilling crowds at air shou^ for the
last 21 years.
On the panel in front of you are all the
instruments you need - plus a screen giving you
an e?£temal view of the complete formation you
are flying. Slip out of line for m second and the
eagle-^yed Red Leader wlfl be on the radio
ordering you back into position.
The program com^ with a detailed flight
handbook that will soon give you the confidence
to take YOUR place alongside the ace pilots of
the Red Ajtows, even tf you've never flown
before!
Putyoursetfin the pilofs Si
of the most manoeuvra^U
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A gripping, realistic
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Amstrad,
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BBC Micro
Atari
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The Subscription o^f'r
all other
TWO
US GOLD
OR OCEAN GAMES FREE!
Sin^;« Zzi||i64, our sister magazine forC<imm&dore owners, was lynched with
subseription offer of freegames^ ^Qwm pitople have written in saying how unfair it h
thpt CflASH readers ha vi ifwt had the Mine Oflportunitv, Welt now we've put the
manef righll
Here's the amajing CRASH SUBSCRIPTION OFFER Two fantaftic games worth
lis 90 (and that"s more than the subscription costs!! are yours absolutely free rf you
tahe out a 12 month subscription for CRASH!!
There'sachoiMof siK gamesto pick Irom, three from US Go Id and three from Ocean,
two of the leading software houses in the UK today. All you have to do is fill in the lorTfi
postage}, make your choicra of games and they H ba winding their way through the post
Eo v^u as soon as we can gel them off! AND youll be receiving a copy of Britain's
t?f ightest Spectrum magazine every mDiith for b year
Your maths are probably better than ours, so it won't take you a second to work out
that with the games costing more than the subscuption lee you can't reatly go wrongi
Thfs offer is only open until 30 Aygust 1SB&, so don't hang around, fill oul the form and
seitd ii off to :
CRASH SUBSCRIPTIONS, PO BOX It LUDLOW. SHROPSHIRE SYB IDB
» (Oceans ,0 start '" ,nst
PLut EViAX (US Gold) World
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were awarded the Blue Max
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3D ftytng game you mu^
take off and fly a mission
against enemy aircraft, tanks
and anti-aircraft guns,
straffjng or bombing vital
targets, and return safety to
base for rgfueliing and an-
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Subscribe***
^ CRASH
oftfiega'"®'
on tfiis !«"«•'
f^TCH DAY ^rJ^^^^^
*^^ ever L£f*r' ^^
one whSh mS?r''^'»'' ^nd
Vi
JJ^St famous of the gre^,
D?s nW/^® °"9'"»' sea
CRASH special offer subscription form
L Yes, 1 want to s^bscrib* to CftASH for t2 issues and re«ive
two of the games shown on this page tree.
Nam« ■ ■
Address
Postcode " ■
The games I would like are (circte TWOlt
Match Day Street HawV Rotand's Rat Race
Zaxxon Blue Max Flak
I erwtose a cheque/postal order for £14.50 made payable to
Pl^S^note that Roland's Rat Race and Street Hawk je not
X^ atthetime of writing so if you choose e^her of these
^ISlMther e may be a short delay before del.vefy.
rJiA&H MAGAZtNe, PO BOX f 0,
l
SKIP YOUR WAY TO
WITH KP AND
in an exclusive
CRASH competition
V
MASTERTRONICs new
release ACTION BIKER
features the star of KP's
Skips bags, the man him-
self Clumsy Colin in an
areade adventure game
which has you driving
round town looking for a
friend to give htm a lift to
the spaceport.
Along the route Colin
meets a w Note series of
hazards, mcluding oil
slicks, other road usars
and police cars. To help
sustain him on his travels
from house to house m
the town, he can always
gobble up a few Sktps. . . .
S4 CRASH July 1985
y COLOUR VIEWING
) MASTERTRONIC
^
There are 1&0 houses in
town, fifty of which con-
tain items that will help
Colin in his quest to find
his chum . . . arvd he can't
enter some of the houses
because there's no-one
in. The race is on
MASTERTRONIC and
KP Skips have teamed up
with CRASH to offer a
super competition to
CO m memo rate Col i n ' s
arrival on the small
screen, and a lucky
CRASH reader will win a
14 inch portable colour
telly as a resutt. Ten
whole cases of KP Skips
are atso on offer to
runners up.
To enter, you'll need to
invest in a copy of the
gairaip clip out the official
entry coupon from this
issue of CRASH and draw
a map of the game. Send
1^ your cartographical
meslerpiece off to
MASTERTflONIC at PARK
LORNE, rri PARK ROAD.
lONOON NWS 7JC to
arrive by 30th
September. No doubt the
winner will acquire fame
as well as a mfty cotour
telly, 'cos we mjght just
print his or her picture In
the news pag^s too!
kr
prettV P****^' m
-0 ^* ^ CRASH July 1 E
RASH foSTBAG, i >,
mm.
H ymi'nn now to CFtASH -* Iwllo. If you^ftt mn — Karig on a mo. My
flditDr fbtessfid be hts name etc) telts me that CRASHES popytirfty is
risitvg enormously, up from ajiproximately 49,000 buyers before
Christmas to ainriost BShODO last montti (whkti doesn't lake account
ol all you pirate readers)! SO. jyst to fill you m, this is the CRASH
FORUM p compttod. edited and genera lly ruled by one LLOYD
MANGRAM {that's me}. I am tf«ditkineHv underworlced and
ovorpai- r»o, no that's not right, it's the other way round. Anyway.
the pQint IS that every montn I p\€k out one letter of unusual merit
(th^it ftoesn't me^n it's the first off the pile either, it's ttie one thai
Sticks out momt sKef they've all be«n typ^ in on my ageing 1322
Kirrnes typewriterL and this writer is arwardad £12 worth of soft-
Wife of their choice Got it?
The main preoccupation A this moiitli fall into thra« broad catag-
orieSp more replies [hy the sackload) to Mark Roberts' sIHy \enm
saying that Commodore &4s ar« better thuiri Speetnims. Most are
iptnprintable. and anyway, the sub led ii rather boring; more arpu-
ments for and against Ahen B being like Kni^ght Lore, and avert more
on the subject of Gho&tbusters and i\% worthinett^Of Kack of tt.
The BUG BOX' has done rather well, as you will soon sea^ Af^ the
heading on these pages is an example — thank you Rlehard Eddy
{it's just this or^te though^ OH gets annoyed). If yoy'rc a dab hand
with the p«n, ser^d your entries lo SUG BOX at the address Co be
foiund at Iheer^dofthe Forum I must tell you that pencil worit does
mrt reproduce as well as pen. so you are warned.
Finally, before getting on wrth it, thank you Mark 'Sootty' &^tt of
Mareham-le-F«n, Near Boston, Lines fot the Christmas card ~
there's nothing litca getting in ear ly^ is there ^ and yes, it is the first
of the season.
mv BUYING
SYSTEM
O0#r Lloyd,
I was surprised io see Richard
Harrison « letter in the May isstie
in whidi he sjsld^ '^vho will buy a
Spectmm if they caiTi only afford
one game a nnonth?^
I am vinenr^^lovfid, and 'si nee if
took me nearly a year to buy ihe
Dompuic*r. and I don r belong to
a computer dub to g@1 pirate
copies, i oan't a^ays afford
even the one I thereto re hvm to
choose very carefully ^nd have
dftviaed th^s SYStem
I* Buv CfiASH lor the roviowa.
2. Mm a note of the games i
fancy from the descriptions and
cominenis il don't alway* ti^ke
rfcote of the ratings slthoiigh a
very low one will put me off|
3. See yyhicH ones ^re avaM^
able ai the locat sh<»p,
4. Check other, le^er, mag-
azines fof revCews.
5. Waft tof tfm next month 4
CRASH to se« the praise or
CQfTiplainis.
6. Buy a ganw when I heve ihe
This means that I don'i get
rhem wh«n they are new btit I
56 CRASH Jul V 1985
can be sure fhet il m money well
spent. \f rtiore peopie did thss
then th e arriti^des and prices of
the sohwate firms might
change After alL you cart often
read Fetters hom people saying^
I wish I had roiid CRASH first; or
1 dashed out to buy it the
moment it came into ihe shops
end then wished I hedr^'l/
As tdng as people do this end
will insist on putnne nrioney
down tor the s^ske s>f the litle,
pdcfcagtr^ or the publisher's
fWfit alone, then rip^oH* will go
on If Ihe pij bl i c shows that it is
discriminating enough logo for
Quality games at a reasor^abie
price I hen the software bustnes^
would have 10 change. It may
nriean less games but far more
sai^sfi&d customers. Don't
iporget. if the cu^onwrs aren't
happy — welL we all know what
hss happened to a k>t of
companies latety. Better stiii.
why not do as firebird does and
have two rangres, m least the
price woy id then give a rot^gh
idea of the program
Aiifi Smfth* Forvnby i Meiseyiids
Thfs s&ems to mato sound
S0m^. -^/'n, sndfor yourpitms (
imBfti van hnefot the m^mh
$r»rus. fs&& from y#wf tofcfr tfj^t
y&u w^S^nl&d Gyron from fir^ifd
as s pffic — tts mi Iff way.
Just occssmn^ffy t m^fmg& to
ron^/fFrp fh^ A^wisr Thki fle to
. .ne 5fff fwt> /erfew
- i- 'fve it, ^fid thfs monfh f$
ff rho^& occasions^ f Of thts
i piec& of Jmgoisifc ffBg-
fT'SUPTOUS
Dear Lloyd,
Boomi Aslwnte. Che
' resound ing echoes of yet
another collapse in the mngfe
compuEer lungle are fading in
my ears. My local, hardworking
;ii>ji fr^4.ririiv hafdwar^-software
' J I ifjn, a victim of ttw
iii,iy=-My i.iM^™^ •"' **"■'■ ■iqurdalor's
bloodied a^^ 1 good
COmpur^, Imayjni;, AebbiL OHc
Compute rs. Drspon Data, the
loaii ^igtCmagazineand
of L I ^i late lame nteri
Perscinai Comptitcf Gdm^. The
lisr IS endless To ihmk ihat
many of these were iilSed off by
mismanagement and i nacf equ-
ate market manipulafion
We are informed that PCG
died of a f etaf disuse known as
insij^' - i 5 J rwer^uiiis, tt is
geri miraded through
poor aavoflising usage, rl is
highly contagious and part 104^
Jarly lethal 'But' I hear you cry.
"PCG was a hot sailer . what
happaned to them^' Yes, i hey
sold copies and that looks good
on papef , but The cold faasare
that it is adveftfsing and not
sties that make or break a mag-
a/ine In this sphere PCG was
only 30 50% as effeaive as
CRASH bicausean ^d placed in
PCG fof a Spectrum product
would reach, Btma*^mym onfy
S0% of th e reade rsh jp, bgt a
similar id m CRASH would
reach 100% of the readership
But with so many firms hitting
rock bottom after the Christmas
nish, howhasS^nctair Resaarch
fared you might ask? FFgures
show us thai Sinclair made £B0
million tumdver lost year —
almost inconceivable m such
times of hardship.
Perhaps this tel^ us tfiat th is is
fiot tha begjnniiJig of a miMive
industnjil domino effect. The
scare already had a sporadic
foundation in Summer 84 when
a miM>ly Ramboyant software
hOiiM faded Into m«ignrfican^
Ara we surpriMd that Imagine
foundered? No, because they
didn'i produce the games, only
hot air. Unfortunately they lefte
great deal of unemployed
people behind d^em. We cannot
dose ou r eyes to shake u ps i n
the business, Commodore laid
off 124 workers at Iheir Corby
plant and they face the humili'
Bting failure of the Plus 4 Acom
are rosing heaviiy arwJ Apple are
reducing world wide stocks. But
the world wi H not end overnight.
The prophets of doom h;jvp
been proved wrong t ri#
much vaunted MSX u. , „ ^ . ., . .
seems to have been rendertRj
impotent by its redundant 1^
standaid^ 9
Perhaps Sinclair has survivw^
because of the greatly quoted
'fanaticanov^liy oISl
users Nobody, not even
CI ivie, Dou Id have invi »ai_
su rviva^ of the Spea ru m. h has
fepulse<tall competitors Evea
Commodore software pales
beside it m depth and contents
So the future^ it seemsjies m ttve
continued suppo^ of Spectrum
owners for Spk^trumsoftwara
houses ThD market Isn't
collapsing, if s going rhroush
growth pangs and onty the best
will survive with otir help "^ >
Oomputer usets^ We hay r ; s ^
mast important voice m theiorig
run. Don^t neglect iti Dori
hopel
Andrew CusadiL ( IS)
Glounthaune^ Cofh. ttelandl
/ ought 10 P^^^t 4Hif thai
Mfthoagh PCG fooked ffk& a hot
s&fier^ tr never r^^fty ac/f levecf
fAff kmtfof ^les that n nmw^to
sustsmih^adv^ffis^f^ inc'iAe/r
re&fprobi&m was Ifmt thm^g^vm
so many ads av^y tOQ chempfy
to make th§m ymnh pfmtmg —
thafs th0 fitm/ dt$Base Yoor
choice of software is on its wav.
SAVE MY ART A
LEVEL
I
Hi, thanks for a gr^at m^g. it's
reallY hoopy 1 1 hove my Sth form
A level art awMment coming up
won and i am mdeeperfite need
of some artwork thai has scime
I sta ndi n g , done off m V own back
So I hav6 enclosed a new ntie
gmphic for tha tetf^r page, anri ^t
would make myejcistenceso
much nicer if you would publish
\i instead of Oli Frev's usual title
Anyway, groveL grovel, plead,
plead. 24 acae ta&etg and a
$pity hairdo to support' Hoping
you will noi ruinrny futyrelifeby
not prrniing fheilile and sogei-
ting chucked off my art coy rsp
II S your fauEt that I haven't done
enough wor h, telking me all ih^
ereat gafn&s I have to cop- er
uy, I hen I have lo spend all
night to play the game and SO
f[et no art done. So it's all yoyr
atjit
ftichard Eddy 1 16L Hetston.
Cornwall.
Ok^y, Rtch^fifSddy — fhts />
Your Art (up af r>ie top of (he
p^ge somewhereh Th^r0's
3ii ^oiiVfl rfol fafawMY frarrr Sr
MORE
ELECnO-BOP
Omr Lloydp
I ocKild only gape with horror on
raading J. Kinnmons' letter en
titM 'Sop a& you Zap' Despite
hj« apolc^jtai concerning the
«Ktren>e heavy irietai content, I
felt compel leo lo wnie my own
'Funksfs' VersionV
1 WILD WE ST HERO
SpaCQ Cov^boy by the Joniun
Crsw
2 DX DECATHLON
Body Break by The SOS Band
3. ALIEN 8
Light Vfrars Away by Warp 9
4.FBEEZBEES
Lel'^Brh^dkihiy tee by Break
Madnne
5SK00i0AZ£
Kids' Rap by The Hspoligists
6 ATICATAC
Release Yourself by A^eem
7. TRASH MAN
Down on I ho Street by Shakatak
8. BOULDER DASH
Kfr^o of P\ock by Run D.MC,
9 KNKSKTLOIftE
Freialis Come out by Night by
Whodini
10 CYOJom
Lei 1 1 all BiDw by The Dazf Band,
I think thai 'Pop as you Zap"
may be a more suitable title
(popping beats bopping any
day)
Thanks for A great mag. I
Panicularly like Jetman and the
okes, a no you new column
Merely Mangramseertis both
corvcise and infonmative— keep
upthegoodworlt,
Slephe«i Middlemb*, Purtey,
Surrey
EVEN MORE
ELECTRO BOP
Dear CRASH
Sop as you Zap' , . .
LAZY JONES
Relax by f rankle G T H
RAID OVEA KAOSCOW
TvvoTr^b^^iby FGTH
FARENHEIT3000
The Heat H On by Glen Fray (no
ral^Hi^n}
PACMAN
Hungiy L^ke theWotf by Ouran
Dufan
LUNAftJETMAN
Clouds Across the Moon by TTie
RghB^nrt
BOOTY
We Aro Sd iiing hy Rod Stewart
GHOSTBUSTERS
GticsttHi^ters by Ray Parker
Junior {wh^telaell
SABRE WULF
The Lion Steeps Tonigh! by
Tight Fit
DICTATOR
Every body Wants to Rule the
World by Tears for Fears
JASPER
Rat ftappir^g by Roland Rat
The other point of my letter is
to mk for a pen -pat — not an
ordinary PAPER AND PEN PAL
but aofneone who is prepared to
writs their letters on compyierl
This wafy we could svn&p progi-
ramming ideas and perhepa
work on a pame together, if
anyone is interested I male or
female) please write to:
Grahame Robertson, 56
Pierson Road, Ounferml^r^, Fife
KY114UU.
My interests are: Blake's 7,
Frankie Goes to Hollywood.
Playing computer games. Try-
ing to write my own rou lines,
and of course reading CRASH!.
Thanks.
Grahame Robertsofi
Bl^ke '^ 7/ ^ / thtnk th& Ghost ■
buglers Orte i^ ^ cop out, a/*d
shotjMn*t Sabre Wulf ^ave got
Hungry Ltke the Wait??
LM
AND EVEN MORE
ELECTRO BOP
RRO MANIA
Burn This Place to the Groundby
Venom
LUNAR jmvUW
M Di] n sh i n e by Venom
POLEP0srn6N
Power Drive by Venom
SPYHUNTER
Stjv by Robin Geofge
KNtGHT LORE
Howling at I he Moon by
flemones
PUNCHY
Punch and Judy by MarJIHon
ANDROID 2
Tb^ Body Eiijctrtc by Rush
PYJAfWARAIAA
So Tired by Qiiv Osbou me
DrS DECATHLON
Run Runawcsy by Slade
CutAnn tWotfefi! McLaugtilin
{131. Amagh, Co Tyrone
Culann afso asAs why we
haven Y reviewed Pollergetst or
Swords Si Sorcery toy PSS The
reason's simple enough, they
havan'l been released yer
becatiW PSS ran into progrsnrv
ming trouble that has taken an
age to sort out. Anyway, enough
bopping. poppir>g and zappir>g
tojr the moment. The dreadfu f
author of this craze, a certain {or
i & that cret i n ? i Jeremy K^ mn^ons
haswrinenagain
LM
WRONG AGAIN
vd.
-ymeueqfCRA*
mefUbi
115 lam pr«*Ttv
adversonp":
anything to
as It states
Seal. » . .,an. LonctonSEIS
Matter imtnendtod. Sw^
yeit*iP« qwtle right I mMi
fbofced badly, thinking you wsfc
feltrrlrifl to Ihe Lerm pd Tlit
M jcfocamlte id for ttieir tape
copter hn bMii wWictoewn* et
yoy may haw eien frcMfi the ImA
issue As to be^g 'sortttlf
what else has a poorly ftt
minion to do but kick i ha ^l
occasioflt^y?
LM
SOB STORY
Dear Uoyd.
I do not know why I keep on
pitting your magazine because
my Qom^uter is Broken I think I
only gat it because it i^ the best
magaijine I have ever read Mote
Jetman and more powers
please and thank you Firebtrd
and Ultimate for such brikliant
gan^es.
Ctlfiateplier Mitchell. Ballyclflre.
Anlrinn
Sorry io hear^bout the sJck
Sp^ctrym, Chfistaptter. rtope
vou csn get it ftxed saor}.
"" my
% . — -
ffUSSf II iOir« #tti»r fiUt-^
9hm mmmmdti ng trtwnpr ro gmt
I leNwar*. . . .
'Oft, C^lEN DOtTiWl^^
BEW£tg<jC i^ND 1
CRASH Juty 1985 57
J
CocoufiFuL ^ PrrTRflC-
o^
^f^i%
And h9in*M m ^Mirn^ny iirt^m cAftiHifl aiiHY from i^MyU3
rrS CRASHBD
AGAIN
Oea^ Lloyd,
HeJIo. it's me 4^ in f fYou do
remember me, don't you 1 7
iGroan — who €^yid forget?) I'm
afraid IVff got a bit of a gripe to
mak^H bul only slightly at
CRASH, so chm up. what?
Tf^ syblect of ihi$ compFamt
is lh« game Wnggf^r by Rflrrdv
Ro4x)1, and your review of tt The
problem is Ihai yoy neQl^ted to
mentio^n wbat a p^ifl it i$to toad.
Vsm Qorm Ihrough tvwo copies of
ihe tape, aon Ihere fof i don i
know how long, and got the
game to load a grand total of two
times. Now bfiic^e you stArt
going on about cleaning heads,
filah. bJah. blah, white spirit
drpne, drone, drone, onoe a
Wii^k waffle, waffie, iet me say
that the inp^ deck I a m u s ing has
never given prc3t}!enis bef ore^ ii
loads every tape \n the coi i ed ion
lirei tin>e ac^ross 3 wide rartge of
VOkime settings. Th^ pK^bfem
seems to be that some wally at
Amorous Android had th6 bright
idea of getting ino load back-
wardSr as you can see when the
title pupe loads (or trifts to). Firsi
the attributes come up from
b&ttom right to top Ian, followed
by the pjxet data, again from
bottom right 10 lop left If thai
leavee you confused, then that
makes three of us— you. m^e
and my Spectrum Whoever it
58 CRASH July 1985
was had this brainwave really
ought to be shot. So plea». next
tirne a game is reviewed, please
make sure to mem ion if you
hava f^kblafM loading it.
6y Iha way Lk»yd. you really
should team to add up. In your
Cf epiy to the poem last month
( 16L you said you couidn't give
Aft^n 3 and ftnditrs K^^p&rs
because you could ofity Qive
a w^y £ 1 2 worth of softwaf e.
Well I think you'll fkrkd that C3 95
and CI 99 only come to CI 1 94.
StilL its atl right, Uoyd, we
understand.
When 15 terminal Man coming
back? Do you need any more
reviewers^ Will I do^ Why is is
Oliver Frey SO gcjoci^ Why ts
Angus Ryall so funny? Hss he
been sued yei^ How did Miles
Auckland do Sug&tao in 9
seconds? Mow coma Tower of
despair end Twin Kingdom
V^Z/ey^were both at No 9 lest
nnon th ? Why tf oes ft obi n Candy
look Itke Zola dudd> b that his
name, or is it a speech defect?
A)l this and more will be
completely mnored in the next
issue or, ..CRASHn
Jefemy Kimmons, Croydon,
Surrey
r/w versiom we got of Wn gg ter
were not turbo fo&ifers, so thoy
tamtod fine for us 6/a^ b^ah,
dfo/je, waff/e. waftfs. What do
you expect — poetry^ iaient and
maths a// at the same time/ The
answers to your mam sanous
pt^mls sre: Don't know; no;
rfe/mrte/y not; he tries herd: he
tries too h^rd; no, but not for
v^fi^nt oftryii^ff hard: that's whei
v^e're ali sskmg ours&lvtts:
h&ver^ tyou heard otai^uai
ptaangf: they'fJE one and the
same; is your surname a
misspe/ting?
LM
FISHY
EXCLUSIVBS
DearCHASH. '
What about ihese 'excfusives'
1 h at pop u p now and aga in? J am
referring to Death Star
fnterceptor. Computer & Video
Games proclaimed il as an
eMclusive review, but you dida^
well. Is ihefe some fishy
business qomg on„ or what?
Ian Nft&h^ Winyaies East,
Reddhch
there often ts somethirfg fishy
gaing on, ^^n, but if fs (fie
$aftwtJFe houses that are often
(O bf^me. An Vxc/i/srve'is
supposed to fre exactty tfutt
M.igs fike 'em forobvmus
redSons. and the battfe logei
them has hortedup^ which fets
son/lie unscrupulous markettng
them ail over the pface. As far as
C&VG goes, they seem to say
"exdusive' rather 3 ioi and
sometimes they are even right f
LM
MB PLEASE f
tr Sir,
!l have ahwaya got CRASH ^i nee I
^received my computer last
B '^ Tmaa. Beiweviit. Idon'i
fisubseripijonandi
SOmeoni] gets the I|
on the whm before I
I heve a ComrtKidor ^
friend wtto go4 mmm 1 of i
on my advke. Ail m all it i
nutxe good But lopking 1
^T I noticed a page saying th
you got a veer's subscriiHion,
ypy woufff f fN;-<«twe wverel US
Gold ga r our cliolce sudt
sm Tappi^ . . Mw-'i^ntef^ Bruce Leef
etc
Why don't we get thm& meg»-
brilliant offers tar our larrific
msq^ine?
David Ab^ Wmmm^rsb, E Sussex
/ think I r&iher hkv aH ihfs *Dmr
Sirstu^^ ^ - "^ ' ffrumtse,
becauS' ^ne of wriur^
thedet^ii.y fiovtm'tb&enagrmd
yet^ i}ut there is e demi afoot fore
CRASH Subscription deaf
fndudmg some US Goid qames
— scan ihe pages to see if «/
amyedintime torth^s issuv
Ar^d tJmnks for ifre dr^wmg of a
weft known fmufv Vi/h,'^wasit
by the v'. j, it was
or was m Sindatrp
LM
ItE
MUEII
MPc
nCH
30h
TEH
EN
ti*o
'i
!•
4
MORE
GAMES
THAN THE
OD^MPICS
-s WTi% APVtNrrLFIiE QUEST 4GE NT USA AIR THAI FKtmSTntOl AMERltAN FOOTBAM ANT ATTAC K AL/tOMANIA AVAl.ON AVIATOR BATTLFlAltS m^
i\i liUGCEil llUltlCBUynllS blue max BOILiR HOUSE b<.lULJ>EH DASH HRAINSttJKM HKAXX HLUFF BRVi P. LEE BYTE t:AMtLOT CASTLE OF TFKR
! E^ WE MAT OAIJ VTIiOMPSONS I>Et ATNli^N I JEH-XTlVt tlKitlt-ft DAN IKK5MI JAJIK S MEVENtit 1 JRA<K>N FIHE DKELBS tXINCIFDN ADVENTUMfi El N MK K
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lilTLOil KOKOTONI WKLF LIQONNAIHt LEMMINil WNniU>ME LOlU^SOf MinNK^HT MANIl MlNEH MASTEtMINn MATOl HAY MATCH Ft^lNT M^>LAN M^
IDNPATHOi MR ROBOT MSPAC: MAN MLK*SY MUSIC MAtlHJNfc MUtANl MONTY MVt HB^S II NATO CXIMMANDER NOMAII OF TSME 0\ ¥Mt*ICS M ORI'
tH^AK PIFI UNK HXyV^ KXH> POLE IX>\mON Kl^lT^ON I^YjAMAHAMA QUANt;<> QUIj^J4ASTEH RAH> OVfcR MO^ttlW RATTl KR REIH'OATS RETUH!^
iH WVfRKAIM RORflER HC>lW>TWON SbH ROLANIKpOESnitJUlNC; SABKE WULF S,At;A (U fmi TUfc VIKINii Si RAMBI h SC UHBHH IHVF MIEF.R PANIC SHERIC
mof mt IJNE SHOOT TKft MAPILVS S|k<XlL OAiE - SKUll SMUt^CiLEH SNOOKEft JiNOWBAU SCifT WAkE ^TAR iON OF HlACiCiER SPACE SHUTTLE SPELl.HOI
fmtty S^'tDER'MAN SPiUM OF THE 5TONE.S SPTTFIRE Al E Si'Y HUNTER CTAFf Or KAHN Am STAR TKAJJER ?rrAR lUtK Al IVENTURE STAR WARRR>R STEU J
J.TnWBSNOOKF-H STOP THE EXPRESS STRIP K>K£R VUlCIDF EXKRF SS SULTAN S MAZt SWAIi TALE^ OFTHE ARMHAN NIC;HT> TECHNICIAN TFM TEST MAI
i ^IMJM: WLAi;Ut THE liRKAT ^mCE RACE THE THINKER TIR NA NOG L KANI^YLVANlAN IX^WtH LK^H' VIZ A WRITE M WANTED MONEY MtM.E WI:AI
HN WHtTB UCiHTNINC; W1l|> WORE>£ WIZAR£> OF WPH XAVtClR. ZACiA MISSION UIM ^uAXXON /EN|I ^OnlAi: MASTER 200M I^^AMlAi ^>|ILK LL ZOI
When you are looking for the best games in town look no
further than Software City.
Even if you are just browsing we*U be happy to show yoti
the selection of great games we have to offer.
We stock software for Spectrum, Commodore 64, Atari,
BBC Electron, Amstrad, MSX« Apple and IBM tnachines,
or we wiU order if you cannot find the program on the
sheif:
^^
THE UK*S NO.l SOFTWARE DEALER LIMITED
3H2 Kings Road Chelsea SW3 01 352 922(»
14 Thames Street Kingston-on-Thames Surrey CI 541 4911
47 Cheap Street Newbury Berkshire 0635 i\h9(\
J _
REDUNDANT
COMPUTER
Dear Lloyd p
I though! you might bo
intiirMt#q in the encJofifld advert
from Ihe Portsmoytti News, It
SMfns to syffl up what a lot of
SpfClrum owners Vnmk tbour
Petur ChfisifTi vif Watariooviilft.
/r&aify shoufdffX Pewr, buhrdki
m^Ae 0v0ryof^0 fn th0 office
h^tf, so fter&'i the cffppmg . . .
4««l»^i
SOFTAID
DMfCflASK
I tipve d iscov^red m pi oWom. In
r«ftding Ma/« itsuo Idtoovereit
a letter by vinia Kully €omp4am-
ino about ihe price of Saffaid
Viina &aid ihai the pnce was
suppi>sed to be OSS. bui the
price in WH Smith and oiher
shops was €4.99. Are ih@ shop^
making a pmfitor haveQuidi-
irlva put ihe price up lo tai4i«
more money for charity Roaao
pirt me in the clear
bwld Yarwoixl, Piston, Lanci
PS.hnAprtri9d He i
edwBrtlaem&nt f l ^ . : J wh^riJ
it tAllayoy the indudeti O^f^eSp
ycju wrdle if ci^ofofli Wot
ii^ilead of Kokomm MH FimIM
IVi^o tf r^ wf/ cs/ting ^ fo&t?f Do
^/fwork for ofherpeopte't Bdw?^
tf^i iMSue ina fO%t*H m# / sp0H if
wrmcfty. Thepmtstsorry-^
pubticiiYp0o^t0taf Quicksffv^
got ft wronp^ jmdmsife ffm
offgmaf nvstJtfi& Atocif ift0 p/ice
As far as fm swbhl^ the ihops
&r^ ifmpBOff/mmskmg the teasf
out 0/ Soft aid. imtf£4B9iS fight
IM
ON THE AIR
Deaf Lloyd.
It'v faean n lor^g time since I lail
wrote to you ^ you might
rmnembBf. m issue 2 I ^as
asking about keytxiards and
TVs, and in issue 4 about loading
screens, mnd also in thai letter I
wall tha fjrat person to aMjggest
CRASH Binders fw+iy dtdrr't i a*t
a fr^ one because of Thisp
Artyway, since ihen Tve ihoi
to tame (well onty in londont
You probabty knoMr about
Lonoon's IriMfsondent Radio
Station, Captt«1R«dki Wen on
60 CRASH July 1985
CapttaL for the past 3 years
there's been a you ng people's
programme called )0r2. readers
m Manchester might recognise
the presenter — Kelly Temple,
as he used to work for Radio
Ha I em On XY2 lusedlodoltie
computer part of the ppog-
ramme where i reviewedthe
latest games and compiled and
read the computer news. Sadly
XY2 isn't on the ak any more,
but tfier^ will be a new
programme vei^ aoonj
Since my la$t letter I've
bought a Currah Micro^peech
unit which I have no complaints
about. Wh«n Vm using dm unit
VimA appMf &n the mmm wh ich
\ can' :t get rid of Please tell me if
rt IS possible to get rid of tfiem,
.md why IS il that some games
will not work with the unit
[connected?
Before t go, fs there any
inferfa^o availobtethdt will
allow me to conned my Casio
Ml '40 E Sect ron I c organ to the
Spectrum?
Kari Ftaachke, WAmbly , Middic
//5//0 fCari, iVrtfeeiX ff0fnemb&r
youw0^/, Thosey^ef0Sh0'QO(Hf
old d^fs' wt^en ive were aH
cmmmed ifito on# tmy office
^nd before the fikes of
Cafjdyman and Bear^a Kfdd
^trffved to steal my ^922 H0rrn0$
typewriter. I'm also very familiar
wm Captfal tin fact Cft4SA
.'idveriised for a short wf^ite on
CafiitaUmtdBttftoughf^adio f
}S B suftabt^wtstitute, it isn't
ifijfte tfie sarrw — sometf^mg
you rrjiss after mow/13 to the
Wfids of Shfopshife. let me
inow wf}en the rmxt smrims Qt
XY2 starts f
Tffe Currah Microspeech unk
r/oes cause sorrm picture inter-
ference wfien in use^ efthough it
shoutdn't be too serious, ft's
impoftent that tfje TV be ¥ery
frn eiy funed to tfte Spettrum And
ifiat you heve then f me tuned
fb€f unit itseff u^iing the tuner
knob, ff tff^t doesn't ti/fe ttm
tine$, /suggest you gei in (ouch
wiff^ Welwyn £/mtronfCS, tffe
current mmufiicturefs. As to
Sfoareiectronic org^n, rmr}ot
amifi^rwith this p^nicufar
keyboard, but tf>e teeh nii^be
people teit me that as long $s rt
has the standard Midi ports 0*4.
yt^u shouidbe abfe to connect
up via Midi mtertace tD your
Spectrum in fact Tech fkfichewif/
be looking at mustc interfaces in
e fortftcoming issue, probsbty
AtipusL
L3n
I
IA«M to f^il YiMi eiiAf thim
npr«i#nr«f ion of my f«'f »«/f ff
■n'f tooJr as though m Iukhvs
Jr&« — p*(?fiir*» fniKn #*4 ill
ATKMSOM of Cm*itr. Uwpoai
LLoyg
DISGUSTBD &
II^FURIAJED
Ctear CRASH (UoydK
I m> DISGUSTEa INFUHIATID
and general lyverv/very a^ngryat
th« amoynt of faulty ftoftwart in
shops these days. Surely
software com pa m&s should
check theef games for falJ^t$,
atter all. we pay a lol of money
for rs^wgamis.
Manhew Nowmttnp
Whittlnford, Cvnbrkl^^
PSr I recently s^nf Robin Candy
instructions on how lo finish
Bfi»nBfoo(f^xe^x&go 1 , and how
10 o$t alM parts of th« 'Seal' in
TifNaNog,
I wAfl lO i^ngry when if) Iha
May issu« of your fab mannirw I
Mw exactly the ^me info on
both of Ihq gam#s by di Keren!
peopte. Do those two people
natly ^x4St or are you mahinp
ihenann«sup? The Setter I thin Is,
t]iecause you couldn't think of a
place to situate the imaginary
diaraaer of S, CouHhrust^
My tfes/ Afeiff^^w, c^fm down,
or you *if t usi 3 p^yone or
som&thing, B^ft&\^ me, nons of
ys Aa5 the time to mvent
tmsgrfisry ft}ttt^r yvnt^rs of any
sort* Robitf r^^ives an enor-
mous b&g ofmatt^/vwrydMy^ out
ofwhkf^ you coiifd pf&bofbfy
p^k ten fetters ssytng much the
same thing. Of course, if no one
wrote, wewou/dn'tgetthe
information, bui U is rmpossib^e
Ip credit everyorw with every -
thing you know. Couifhrust tstf.,
might fieve forgotten to put his
fuffeddress ofi {orFob*n mtghf
hflve iost itL itd(>&S happen
Bestdes, to comptete the
im&gfn&ry persofj wo ufd be very
Msy — YOti*¥e onfy to think of^
tam^ BndecountiY^nd there
Mre thOusBndS to pick from
LOGGING ON
D^at Sir,
^ J nq rmw to the mogazi M \
Wor>aer if you oovild tell me if, in
the past, i map o' Jet Set Witty
ha^ever bMfi pubNshed?' If rt
h^^ how cuiild I obtam Ihe back
copy thet ths map was ml
Panny Williains^BaaUdon.
tQCf<A$H^/tcenmnfy
£3ef7f}Y^ in f&ct f thmk w&
' tfm first by & nttrrow
m. You csff fmdtt tn CRASH
S(JuneB4y Tijt order b&ck
tber& vh^ktiut the mi in (hrs
issue whfch f>es bH tfm detmfs —
Aetso ieiis you wh^t other mepm
fbsve eppeaf&d m CfiASN
The next wriier atso hes some
^imitsrguestmns .
IM
nLLMETHE
ISSUES
Dear CRASH,
1 was wonder ir>g if you had
printed the maps io the follow-
ing oames m the past. If sOi
cou id you lel I me 1 he n u mbera of
the mao^zines 5o that I couid
send off for them. They are Ant
Art&ck. Atic Atac, Gift from the
Gods, Hufk. Booty ai^dZigZsg. I
started a n>ap lor Grft trom the
Gods, but every time you reload
fff fecf the Offfy m^p we have
prmtedof the above games ts
At<c Atac whtch you can findtn
issues 6 and ? Unty and August
S4i as ft was in two parts, tt was
reaify after that ttme that maps
seemed to twcome more
tmtmrtsnt.
Si-i>pl«irHll«t
IftijQtmmmm^. Plui§dW*ii
i^irtcticin conr»#euHi infea tlv
MM ore
£19^
rt«f VAf tAd P * ^
Cofiip«tib>ltwtch«il At^r. (y$t«
javHidiB 4nclLidy*qa OLMd^ahot
pm^m IP AwybQWi]. j&fmw^
MM^fH kfidiMioQi
S*iw3 ^ fiiiictlofi* piyiima
fwn wHati tha gam* a
1
^ Tj
^«
C0MCOI4TWIN
JOYSTICK INTERFACE
£22.95
Two pott v#FS*on •iNwftfiOnnAclian oi Bwd fowlick* lor
1}
OUICKSHOTa+2
r norup
£13.d5
FUGHTUNK HOTSHOT £10S0
JO VSnCK wet ViM .j^ sti \psv
Dealef Enquirlai
Walcome^ Phone CURRAH USPQCH UNIT £21.95
Lud low |I£B4) 4894 him ^nlo LOJ^KON •Kitvawn tUm ii>^ VA T Ar>A P&F
ALSO AVAILABLE FROfM SELECTED RETATL OimETS
SflFfdiD
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1 Ho«lt«vt Mi. T4m«iila,
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fomcod^:
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Codt Itwn
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09
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JL
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Co4ncoii Ifttarf BOi
riijs
Comoon Twin Intarftti*
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iSjimh uSpaoeh Unit gt.jff
ConvD on with Qukfcthot 2 2 til .jft
COmcOTk iMiTti Hdlthot
£»^
I tfidOH a ch«qy*^1pOfl«l ^b«r mad* pwy«b4«tit Ff«l Uxl, for
CRASH July 1985 61
TERRIBLE DAI\iGER
Dear CRASH.
I am wrtiing ihis \&t\m tO vvsm
yoy Of the lerrible dsrvger you
are riskiog. Hiving a fook at my
May issue of CRASH 1 feel vou
could be losing d lot uf readers
just due to ceriairi aspiscisf of
your magaiine. I would
therefore lile tooffof tome
constructive crtttctsm of ycHjr
magaj!»ne.
1 The dlsQiisting picture on
(he SIGISEPOST [ia^es Jhi^ is
jus^t violence for the sake of
vioiencQ ^nd does not add
anything to youf exceltent
maga^irie l syggrest a picture of
the many othwstpects of
adve nt y r« that af« fiol fto
horrific. The- govemmerit t ties to
protect cliildrien frcKn seeing
filrnis thai may deeply affed
them mentally and yet they can
pick up your magazine and t(K>k
at pictures of carnage and
gratuitous violence. STOP IT.
2 The price of CftASH has
risen from 75p to 95p m a very
shon time. As CRASH is sokj out
in every shop in my area 2 days
after it has b«en released. I will
probably be righl in assy mi ng a
biij profit is made aft this is wny
you print your mag. Why do you
not cut out soma unnecessary
extras in your m«g such as
Robin Candy arxl D© the first
computer magazine to cut its
price?
3 More flOre^ Your HALL OF
SLIME with Fts heads in various
poses of degradation is just not
funny, moreembarassing.
I hope you can take heed of
these points and I'm sure your
brin mag will have a v^ff
SMCoe^sTuilrfe
Jeremy Connor. Wallsund. Tyrie
ftWen^
SorfYr tur this /s gomg totes bit
they come; ftanunwerof
things come io mmd, on& tefng
the continuaf Mmumeffts over
ihe vtofef7ce of fV^rws /ite£Jr
Who — B/f yeiy mconckssive.
Another iS th^t fr&m^mi^er, as ^
€h*id, footrngmnumemus
comfcs and ^Bo^s Pi^pers " th^t
fteifuentlY contained 'horritic'
dr,^wtngs, ^nd whffe they
frfQhtene^nw, theY&isothritf&d^
which IS a tot of tfm point, tdorf^l
/Know whsr other aspects of
sdventure gitmesi you a/e
referring tQ, hut f can't see m^ny
Cft4 SH re^^der^ being thrtffed by
$^mg fanrj^ntst pittufGS of
f^irwrsses safety rescued,
b&^ides which nto^t &dventur9
gsmes themselvi^s r&fy on the
thrif/ of sudden death —
SVOiding if is the excWment^
2} You say the price bss risen
tn a very short fime^ yet iooking
AacAr issues J to 7 were ar 7Sp,
issijes 3to fS ¥\,fere K/>
iexcludfng the Q^rtstm^s
Specf^lK 50 rn eti^t CfiASHhas
gone up 20p m W montfts —
Bimost a year and a hs^if (fyou
tooketsimifertnles, y^^ witfsee
th&t they h^ve don0fusf the
SAfTWifftQtmoreso. Whsfyou
62 CRASH July 1985
^n? fatting fo see in your
*assumption' is th^t the more
copies that selt, the more we
hei/e roprim, so ttwcost ofprtnt-
mg nses as welt. A? fact as/Vn
Sure rve said before, no msg-
arme makes any prof tr
whatsoever from seihng
magaiines since the money
returned from distributing them
onfy tovers the to^r ofprmtrng
— there's still tfje product/on
costs and safari to pay as we/t
as office overheads, oftfy with
the addition of advertising
reveoije is any profn made As &
matter of fact, the directors ^nd
origtnai founders vf CftASH
tmt^fy received 3ny real safaries
for the first yearonts existence
— there tssometwth behmdtha
fokes after alt As tor coning
ftobm Candy, weii t expect tots
of readers wilt have thtngs to say
on that sub/^t atid if you do
your meths^ you wi/t reatise that
the saving m^de an cutting him
would lessen the cost of a copy
of CRASH by aimit 0.tiOOODf%.
Th&re's arf&iherf^mhere fat
the nsk of beirtg boring f^
msgaimes cost money to
distribute through the chain --
it's dorw by distributor
wfmtesater and retafler each
tatting a percentage of the cover
pnce fwe receive 42. ?Sp ot tfw
current 95p per copy sold in
fact}; if a high votume mag like
OMSW was, say, only GQp
instead of 9Sp like most of its
competitors, tfwn the
distribution chain would be
doing as much work on n for
their cut and receiving less
money fqfit than they woutdpn
a fTwg with a higher pnce and
tfmrefore a larger amount of
money The resuit would be tf%3t
they would refuse to distribute
CfMSH. Would you want that?
You might turn round nowarni
reply, 'you're spoutrng these
figures buthidmg the truth that
you make vast profits anyway. "
All I can say to that is that
CftASH above any other
magi^£ine, has irfedto mvolve its
readership in things that are r^ot
Morw MkmfchmM n^ Hm Mimff.
hug4ikm iiiim fiitw, from iMf
mk£Y. Bk^mrthmmd,
I
ncfmalty mentioned m
magmines fend don't have a lot
to ao with computer gsmes
either! like profit margins,
printing costs etc It's up to you
to t^lieve me or not.
3} Your last point relates vefy
much to ttie fir$t. The l^AU Of
SLIME is 3 'fufi elements
en/oyedby loads ol readers as
t/^mafli^g testifies I don't
expect every one to en/oyit^ end
if anyone finds it degredtng, a}
they won V send trt photographs
ofthemsetves tob0 mutilated,
andbl it is gufte possible to sktp
itm page, just as you can turn off
the TV.
However, it would be nice to
«ee wtmher CflASH readers
gmn0mfly agree or disagree with
yourviev/s, Jeremy, solet's hear
from you.
LM
^
ii
lanmt dcwa/f ga/vi pim i^
*w Uh from Bf*y, Cfi IVIclrftw,
trmtMnd
Be only at your peak as
you enter the HYPER
SPORTS stadium to compete in six NEW
exhausting events in this state of the art
simulation - the officially
^ } T^l endorsed version of the
===/ IMo.1 arcade game.
Continuing the chaltenge
where Track and Field' left off.
hnsgkne Software H writable tromMOOUmmm. whsmitH .''i
L;^^. Mttlt¥S Ru mb e te wi, ^OMM rsptxtnun Shops id M good <
^fficm MUi^h mrt mymtKhm front
pr&gfmtmrmr PAUL
M/fC#fW$<MV. itmcfud** ■£»«»#
CftAfttetftrt froff} thtt forthcaminii
MWll ntE CO VfAMLATT fX* V^CM- Ml
f^u too c04iid Euffwr!
THE
PROGRAMMER
STRIKES BACK
Deaf LlOfytJ*
I have |ust finishNjd Xa^tor tf
whkh, in fact, wMI be called Th&
Co¥mn^nr. I ^m unsure <^f the
release date, but a month or so
would be likely.
I hsve just Plaited full time at
PSS, ano I'm well chuffed witii
my firit job, ha^in^ failed rrw
Mtcind year al UmvefSFtv IB5C
Hons. Computer Engineerfng).
My firsi task was !o design a
suitable detailed loader for
SwoftfsandSofz^ery. Mike
Simpson decidod a scroll would
be fii^e for ttie test window
(similar to DrrBgonforc. but with
'brighV u&dd to add iteptb). TT^
character set I des^pi^ed for
Xa vhr u i s a iso to be used in
S¥tfOtds, as is the sourid roirtlne
filiflhtly modified) I hi¥e now
siorted on writing a 'fnofMeif
editor' for SwQtd& in ofderto
pollsti up the characters. Mike h
ctose to finishing, whether he
64 CRASH Jufv 1985
does or not this month remaiins
lo tie seen.
Weill ..-oops.. .Candyi!is?)l
guess you've spotted the
decorative envetofie. Eight o^
the characters mXavioiif^w
pictured (cartoon stylet out of
the 64. 1 used to do similar
envelopes, as a sort of hobby,
and aend them to a Pirate radio
DJ t several years agi?) in order
to get a mention on a<r. Anyway,
I hope they have brightened up
your mail bag.
What do you mean , . .
*pret©nd to be real reedefs^' I airip
nofiesil And Tm not Wfitirrg for
free ai^en ising, I em genulnelv
being friendly er^d just writing
wpth that in mir>d. After «ll,
CRASH hM been prettv good to
me and I git good service mail
order-wis«. iTyoM really think I'm
jtim trying to plug my game,
please don't print anytliirvg
about eT that I reveal in a letter.
Anyway, alltbe t>est to
everyone at CRASH and keep up
the good work
PMJiHulchinson, Coventry,
Warwtdcshire
. . . andsft&r ihat quick ward
fmm our sponsor, ii% bsgk to ihm
l&tters . . .
Sorry P&ul onfy fsktng ^ pinch
ofmich^et reaify^-honesff Th&
e/7V«/o^ c^rtamfy brfghi&n&d
4/p the msJi hag and ga ve tt^e
tocstposioffwe a headache, ft
w^s f&^^ty bngMfft's rttce to
Afnow that Swords and Sorcery
is sififot^ the way, ar^dgood fuck
withXamOf II (that's the nsme of
the game, folks, dorj't miss it)t
IM
UPSET BY ZZAP!
Dear Lloyd Iwhate weird name)
i am writing to you on the
subject of HAP 164 whicfi has
■ .^fi released and was
J i ly cookad up by co rtain
members of CfWflHto bririg in a
bit more money — I'm iufprtoed
you weren't one of them
I I txHjgnt ZZAP ?&S tor my
^ftn^tui Angya who lives abTOid
and I !fK)ughi f'd lake a quick
look Id see if ^t WH ai gooci a»
CRASH I was diegiriWwI to read
tn the first lew pMes The
Wr ' ' itaiestHome
Ct — ap&n from ihi* r^
bejri y li ye, hmf^ you toM al I f JlSth
in the Spectrum, afief aU you're
, rjUMa ni to be on our side. Roger tl
went more money! Kew. Frenco
and Olivdf fwf were ihe other
two offenders -^ 6 of the best i«
deserved by all XhPm of you
m«
made a bout itiB Spec! p
I was bekrig slaggecj '
ihimigh ihe megaj 'f ^
side are you ofi'^
you -^iinpiviniiKKme money r
ksonWajih. London SW»
Magajr^fres are turmy beasts
because the wntmg ieams Wke
computer owners f get rather
worked up atour i/H?/f
.^uter
'7ahoutthe
fiff)
{.rtH^^rt vvo- ' '
,es^
?fAP*Bd^
'o rake
ciyou
fr'U fr^^w
tfUw mucn fUusf^. .
sor^wemOOObe^xj^
p?
pmnyearrwst?
.mat
ffjDfjfh^ J^mf'i ' ; . ..
., *rHf ro/ii?
\asf&raMthe
pretty i {w^
&£bmr$
ionmraow/i. in utA$Hweheva
sfmays compared like garrres
AMMwt the two machtrfes,
amffefifTf^ tr *he CSM04's
fay^ '3iil we
ha\ 'Gi^t^
IV
Seconds out I ! I Round one and Slugger Sam j
comes out swinging, looking for that kilter
puncti, but the Ha Han Stalibn is ducking
and weaving like a ballerina and there it *s,
the famotis. 'JOyftkk Shuffle/ * Sitrgger hits
the canvas 121 4 56789 and out.
The Stalibn wins and can now go on to
challenge for the heavyweight title of the
world. &eiter than a ringside seat be there
in the ring swapping punches but never
feeling a thing. Bok clavef wfth
KNOCKOUT the fight game o^
Checentury.
c
^
.#
*t--
i^ V
AM YOUnie f1ICIK>WEIGHTCHAf>mON OFBRimm?
£6*95
AITigata Software Umitecl
\ Of*n^ Stxi«i. ShvffittM SI 40M
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Send for your Um hJ oobur product brochure [ertolosea stamp)
ANOTHBH ODB
ffobm C^ndy telfs me tm not to
prrftt Bnaih^rpo§n7 m rhe
Fart/m, because he hal^$ ih^m
tgesiuw of shufnting n^^se
follows j...
In «mp<i$i i%§ thb f ittle pcwtic
dttty
I tsit I'd have lo make ii ^rey
Td satisfy the need for mail,
And to fmlp you pay Lk>vd
Man-qram s baW
(Ho hired a oomputer- never
faidlhe Fentali,
ha dafanea claimed Lle^vd w»
iiwital
Bui the judge showed no mercy
for this kicked crime,
AfM^ sefitenced Haytl to tht Hall
ofStimel
And after all, it's you who say^
Sefid us letters \ Don't delav '
So down I sat arxj began to
write,
This |>oefn for CRASH &n Ihtfl
disrfcnighf;
When withes fly and
werewQ(v&5 hovwl
And Robin Candy goes on tha
Erowl
ooking for polta$ and games to
hack
Without these things he'd get
thasacll
Now listen here young Roger
Voy >e a walty ami too mfjan*
Why not give some more spacx
To tha! Adventure guy with the
fynny face.
With his adveniure ooliimn, a
real boosier
To a dull boring day. thanks Mr
Brewsier.
More of that liippy Angus Ryali
His taste in clothes is reaily vile
66 CRASH Juty 1985
1%
v*tt?^.
He Should be in the loony bin,
All he does is drink neai gin.
And I want to know, who s Ben
Stone?
Aimcret agent: identity
unknown,
A Russian spy with a deadly
Clime,
Sa^ck him now, wliile there's still
timet
To nnish off Td liki topraiM.
Your magef ine (give srewster a
faise)
It's the best magafine around,
I'd pay anything for Cfl ASH,
"0vnri tw#'lv^ pound' fhmtt
Stephen MoUn, W^lton^
Uverpooi
ft islnes too much of my lime.
Orherwfse Vd spend a// dsy
Writing poetfy ^^^ fosmg pay.
Perhsps ftotm Candy was righi
/sh&uUdtsn <po&msQn stghi
fef your heart out Coferidge
LM
SommbvmffumMAJRJW
That's the Sol for this month as
BUG BOX has to have some
room I'm disappointed that no
one has wf itlen to me yel via
Micron«tr but perhaps That'^s
because last month's issue isn't
even on sale yet as t wrile
Addiess for the letters is CRASH
FORUM, (LLOVDMANGRAML
POBOXlO.lUOtOW.
SHROPSHiRESyBIDB
PlMw FMjl* Ifwt A**tpfh* imouirtol lafi*p<lKtt *irM I Oi th* F^ww^>■^df^■v^ftBT^i:il
Ufnphf nol potfMlIt ID *mm infii iMrsofwl «nd pfvita cdHr*ft{H>iHt«i«« W« ho^ vCu
u w*wTiind ili^ mtf wtmM tmth*t mtkm tlw point ih» wmf tti^fi twfw tfd ipii aifftiti fm
waWytf lof t t ^^ mm thai fF»y t m*m wm». Tlmafc you
ji I III njHiin
A, ite
ti
t^-^i
■^ -,!?.>.
1
^.
/
^1f
\-J
Battle your way to three enemy bases.
Do you have the courage, stamina
and skill to become a Game Lord?
From
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/
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QUICKSILVA Ltd. Liberty House, 222 Regent Street, London W1R 7DB tet: 01 439 0666
P ^ivHlnpB
9tnTT
n l977Sirtdairliiunched
a ^>LuJ^i>t TV. wh^ch
CDuld bi^ tiltifHJ into a
>ock#t. bat yotj had Eo
hav^ .* Vet
indlMKl - -ne
£?00 it co%oul: off (abouL
£500 in todav'^^nonev- The
f ol lowi ng vpaf TNl M I CIO"
virion appeared. 1**^ ^i.
Chough the prim ivas hiFQ
it w^n'E a winrher and ih#
HE TELEVISIONARY
The fdea of a portable television set smaif enough to fit into a
p ocket has been with C five Sindair for wetf over a decade, but his
dream on/y recent/y became a rea/itY, available in High Street
shops nattonwtde m the iastsfx weeks. CttveSmc/atr began work
on the pocket TV in the mid seventies. The protect finafiy came to
fruttion m fate 83, £4 mmton-worth of deve/opment tater, when
the Sindair Ffat Screen Pocket TV became avaiiabie by mail
orden on 3 veryiimited basi s. /Vow you shouidbe able to pick ojje
up from your /oca/ store for a fraction under £f 00
S^riclair small TV quier^y diii
jipiHMrfKl from viewing
Devi?lopmeni work wcm
on behind the scones hpw
ever, and the team at Sind^tr
devefoped a highlv compIeK
chip which coukl coniml all
the royt^ne fynclions of a
cachodf? Fay disptay — monii
Of ing video i^nd audJQ mpuis,
ctiecking picture hold and
mainiammg the balance ba-
Hvof^n brightness and con-
trast This chip IS at the li^atl
of the Sinclair flat screen TV,
handlirni the processes
which produce the pscture on
itstwo inch screen.
Whik* other comp^me^
d€vel{>prnt| small TVs hav©
espfof^'ii fhp possibiiitjos of
U1S ^stal displays
- ■ ; those used on
digrtai watches — and gss
plasma di^piay?. S»r Cliv€
has always been committed
to cathode ray tube tech-
nology
Sinclair had to develop a
now vorsitjn of I he cathodi?
ray tub^i in ouler to make a
flat screen TV and the end
fesult. !'■ ued into the
Pocket T, ?^!^ a brighter
piety re. ushk^ myth less
power and has half the voh
lime retalive to screen si/e lo
th^t of corrventior^l cathode
ray TV I y bets.
In an ordinary tie
TV. it Iwam of «- is
fired from a gtin' at the Uack
of the cathode fay liib*?.
through a vacuurri. t<»A^artf$ a
phosphor coa!ir*g on the m
Side ff oni surface of i be tube.
When a point on the phos-
phor coating is hit by the
electron beamp it emtts Irghi,
and the image is built yp on
the scre^ft as the beam s^ani
lines »cfoss then phosphi^r
coaling, moving down a trac-
tion at the end of e^ch scan
before starting tfie next.
A mini screen TV using a
conventional cathode ray
tube would ise difTicult to fit
into your pochef as it has^ to
br comparatively thick to
allow the gun to be at the
b#E:k of the tuba, firing for-
wards
The Sinclair ffat -screen TV
i^urmingly has the electron
}Mn at the side of the screen,
iring eteclrorra at right
angles lo the plane of vision
And the phosphor coated
screen is at the back of the
lube, not the front
Enouah of Thf* technical
detafls.now Sindmr
FJat Scf«n _>rm^ In
Ludlow, where there are i^ll
sons of TV reception prob-
lems, not terribly well — byt
it provides a better piciure
than trie one the colour port-
abto in f Kg off ioet can mariag«
using its Own aeriaL The
Sinclair TV has H te*e%cQpit
rran^islor rartio lype d^nai.
Which needs to be fuHy eict
ondod lo ptcfc up a dL^ceni
Signal, and the telly is veiv
sensitive to ^ls pcisition — a
fx>uple of inches movomcanl
can maf^ii nil ihe differenee lo
Che quality of the receplion.
With a bil qI tiddhng aboyt, il
proved fxissibie lo get a feas-
onablo picture without too
much grief. In it longer test,
which involved our revjuw
modal tfH^ veiling to London,
It performed very welL Out
software edaor managed to
watch two complete films on
it, and caught ftarry Nor«
msn^fifm S5 m a motorway
service staiion"
No, you t^n'i plug a com-
puter i^nto th^ pJ^kel TV. it
doesn't haw^ an aerial mput
socket wh^ch is a bsl of shame
— it would have been handy
to have beD^n a We to plug the
flat Scr^n TV into a more
nneatv aenal. perhaps the
one oni the roof lor bedtime
viewing .but then agai^n, it
is meant to be pocketable,
and you could buy a cheaper
black and white telly for your
bedr<M>m.
The p^ture resolution is
fine — with a iittie effort it
proved quit L^ possible to read
the information on the
Ceef^K and Oracle pages
broadcast in the morning,
and while 'Star Wars" migtil
lose some of its impact on a
two inch Screen, for most
pufposes the sue of the
picture is fine — you"™ sup
posed to watch close up
nvway
twoci
Two controls are provided
on the front p^pnel: an on. off
volume knob and a tuning
knob which nxkves a Imeaf
pointer. Tuning is simple,
|ust Hke on your fafthhil
It fanny hijl liiere's a picture
loof white the SDijnd qualiTv
isri't HiFi, iVs pertecH'/ ace
^tablg and tAnlh Ih^ ear^
frfiotie provided, foiBily pf*¥^
at6 viewing and listening is
po^silate
Fcjf an exifa C? 95 3 mains
adaptor is Bvailabie maiR
order frofn Sinclltir, which
woytd be 5 worthwhile In-
vesin^^nl if yciii pl^n to walch
much mimti+ll^^vdoofii. The
bart^ri^s usod to pow*jr the
^'t are llat iilhmm pack^
^ihich have a lite of some 15
hours oonrmuous goggling,
bui Ihev weigh m 3t f 10 for i
i>jick of thtee — could get a
:>il expensive
Overall the Pockel TV is a
smashing hnie device, and
(or nOO IS not frarth shattef^
ingfy e^t pensive fl is genu
inHy linv and liight Carfymg
pr ■ m an mside jacket
p- - , no proli^fi-m — if
anyibiriy it*s easv to forget il
15 there — and th* TV weighs
[&ss ihan many ponable
stereos
Without doijbt, portable
TVs wiK catch on and may
woll be avai Cable in full col-
our before too long S^r
Ctive s FHar Scrwn TV i% an
e«ce1lent pfodtpct, a lot of fun
to ha VI? and use, and whiS^
Tar from essential m daily life,
much more than a toy
Ap#rt from allowing you to
WBich your (avountf? prog
rsmmes virtuallv anywhere,
there are a host of applic-
ations for such a device. It
could, for instance, bfmg a
WholQ! n^w dimen!i<ori to
watching live sport — you
courd have the best of both
worlds t^y takinc} your pocket
TV mlo the stands ai a foot
1>all match wh^ch ts being
televise. Action replays On
the lerraMs no lessf ^
•
in this Sin
Three lucky CRASH readers wfU win a Flat Screen
Pocket TV in this competkion, sponsored bv Sinclair
Research.
Soon you could be the envy of your friends, able to
'watch a littte TV anywhere' as they say
We've sorted out ten questions on the history of Sir
Clive, his companies and products — and the answers
can all be found by looking through Parts One, Two
and Three of The Sinclair Story which began life in the
April issue of CRASH.
Rack your brains, pore over the articles, answer the
questions and send in your entries to TELLY COMP,
PO BOX 10, LUDLOW. SHROPSHIRE, SYS 1DB to arrive
not later than first post on 25th July, first three all
correct solutions out of the hat will win their very own
little television set. Get cracking —
1) What was Sin el air's matehbciiC'Sized radio called?
The Sinclair, , , „,
2\ How many bytes were there in the ZXBO ROM?
3) What sort of tape is used in Mmrodrives?
4) What was The Executrve?
5) How many ehips did the ZXB1 UUI repiacs?
6) How much does the Spectrym Plus keyboard u|h
grade cost if you fit it yourself?
7} When was the Black Watch launched?
8) Dead Cockroach? Where can you find one?
9} When did CItve become Sir Clive?
10) What is the name of the ICL machine that uses
microdrives?
70 CRASH July 1985
SINCLAIR IN
TROUBLE?
ShocK N^rrpr, prt>be, drim«,
Cfnit F %«
In ihe l^i few wwks thepapers
have been fy II of Tales of Sinclair
woe. How the companv is in
tmubto €wer g fiftMn million
poynd o^Mfdr^rt, Now the bot-
tom is faHing out of Ihi? home
coiTiputor niarfeetand how the
poofrie maktruj the C5 have gone
bacK to assem bling washi ng
maichinos-
T}w Sun has to win the spot
prjze for grossest mcompet-
enca. for descrit>ing the C5 as an
open topped, battefy-power^
four wheeler' ynder a bftnnef
headline of SfNCLAm TRiES TO
SELL OFF C6 TRJKE . Well ctom
lads^ keep on taking the photon
of t%aked ladies. It's what you're
good at
The official line from Sinclair,
reported in the Financial Times,
wai^ that the conrnpany was aim-
ing lo ratse £10 to £15million 'lo
fund long-term growth and re-
structuring pJans'.
^ts clear that Sinclair
fiesearch is eKpctriencJng some
financial difficulti'ea* £30 million
pounds wort h q f stocks a re
bftin9 held, and Thorn EMI and
Timeic have extended credit to
Sirvclair to aid ca$^'h f4o^ prob-
lems. Two and half nuHion
pounds hiive be^i written oft by
Sinclair Research a$ a result of
the pnce tuts mad^ after
Chnslmas m ccMTibinalion with
returns, and a further million
pound loss was incurred by ttire
demise of Priam -which appar^
gntly CAuadd such major prob-
(errts to the company, that Sin-
clair is still trying to work out
qyrie what went wtvere.
Ten percent of Sinclair
Research wa^ $old to share-
holers a couple of years ago for
13.5 million, and even the most
mathematical I V un talented
could wori out th^i the shana
siEe valued the? whole company
i at C 1 35 mi II ion Reoen tl y a report
m Th-e Guardian placed a value
of OO million on the whole
company.
Pf oblems with the QL can't
have helpe<l the piredica ment
that the City now feels Sinclair ii
in. It seems that componenta Ibr
50.000 QL's were onmed befof e
protoivpinB. an^fomewhafe in
the vaulis of Sinclair Research
thef e are presumably 50,000
Sir Clive Sinclair
little batteries that were once
intencfed to provide back-up to
Ihe internal QL clock. And tnere
are probabty quite a few ^28K
chips going spare for similar
reasons, which may have
prompted recent sp«uS at Ion
atx>ut a 1 28K Spectrum.
Not so daft, really, given that
Sinclair ReSrearch may weM have
a signjficanl quantity of suitable
silicon lying aFOur>d MSK of
paged RAM wouk^n'i require d
^ast irwestment in time or
money: the TIV1S2068 had
paging ROM and RAM can be
paged in the same way. And
remember. Interface 1 pages the
ROM. , .
Admittedly, the Spectrum
BASIC interpreter uses 1 6 bit
pointers r which means the maac-
imum amount of RAM that can
be addressed m BASIC 4S 64K
bM such probiems could be
avoided in machine code.
Word has also reached us of
the LC-3. the ZX84 that never
was ^ Apparently the LC-3 was
an abandoned Sinclair pr oto-
type which ran on the Z80 proc-
essor, like the Spectrum, and
h^d a ODOS ROM. which meant
thai QL software could be com
piled down to ryn on it as all the
system calls were the same.
With a buiH in. double mapped
screen (which meant that i byte,
rather than the Spectrum's B, is
needed to display a character k
and a microdnv^ the LC- 3 could
have, and who knows, could
well siill catch on.
Artd one shouldn't forged that
the Pocket TV fs out and about —
over 1 .000 independent dealers
have taken ri on, and Dkons bfb
currently doing a wt^iizo deal,
packaging a Pocket TV,
Spectrum Pius and 5 games, and
2X Printer. Yes EX Printer ... all
that lot for CiM.OO
Meanwhile the rumours are
stid fl/mg: is Sir Clive iryinp to
raise cash by selling Sinclair
Vehicles? Will he raise £15
million from the City, which is
oopulated by sheep' es one
high powered accountant
recently put it 'who follow each
other blindly, even if it means
pus^hing someone over a diff?
SpeculaiEon is. as usual, rifep but
tiie official Sinclair Irne as we
write i$ thai Sir Clive is not about
to Utep down, arid is looking to
rai^e money for further develop-
ment work.
All, no doubt will be fevealed
shortly in the continuing saga of
manic panic in ttw micro-
computer industry. . . .
NOT so MUCH A
SHORTAGE.,,
NIOREARACB?
A mole gets rri touch, mutter irvg
darkly aoout there only being
two machines in the whole
world capable of making blank
microdrive cartridges. The conv-
ersation continues, and we are
totd that when the order was
given by some finanrcial wizard
to cut back on QL production al
Chateau Sinclair, ih^ microdrive
cartridge manufacture was aiso
cut back, demonstrating a Siight
lack of understanding, given
that the price had >ust been cut
drasticslly.
Was Our mole accurate? We
rang Terry 8l00d Distribution,
announcing that we were from
CRASH and learn ihat no, there
isn't really a shortage. 'We've
sold 5104 packs today, and stlH
heve 21 2 in stock, and we've
cyrrently gof 1 n of the
100- packs for software houses
. . , they do tend to come in and
90 out very quickiy. ^rid $ome
people are being greedy. If we
receive a cheque with an order,
oncfi the cheque's cashed we
have an obligation to fill it as
Sjickly as possibte, but no,
era's not a shortage. They jiiil
come in and go out quickly
Thank you very much we say;
and have a linle chat about life,
the universe ar^ CRASH before
ending the conversation.
fieirig trained in the art of
investigative joumaJistic
f radioes, we then telephone
BO again, this time askrng for
'Sales and enquiring about the
availability of microdrive
cartridges from !f>e point of view
of a customer. The lady (this
time) explains that I hay have got
the cartridges ^n stock today, but
the chances are that the
remaining 4 -packs will have
§ one within 24 hours. 'TheyVe
ifficuli to get hokl of,' she leys,^
1f yOAj pl«o« an order/we'ii put it
Oil hold end you might have to
wait u p to two and anal f weeks'.
Hmmm.
A similar ^horne call to
Lightning eNcitsthe information
that they only sell the single
cartridges, and that they do have
stockaat present, 11 you want to
place Bf\ order Td do i I very
quickfv', Ihe lady says, people
00 order hundreds at a time'
DouWeHmmm
But then there hn been a
heavy demand, occasioned
Eart ly by the price redu ct ion and
y the need for microdrive
cartridges for thte QL application
Eackages produced in
in^uages other than Enplishfor
the export market Spanish, for
mstance . . . and translations for
ten other languages are well
under way. So, one supposes,
our moie was sort of right.
2X MicfQdr7v0 CMirf^fges
CRASH July 1985 71
SCREEISI SHUFFLE
Oops time agaim. For roa^>i>s
whfch w ill no doubt remain a
mysiery; unsolved for eons, Ad
W^nt and plonked a loading
screen drawn up by a chap
ca fled Gris ham Lucas rn fheOn
Tha Cover f«^^iure in issue 17.
This wouldfi'C in itself hive
ca Lj&ed too much of a proWefn,
except iho feaiuiB w» on David
Thorpe.
For another un^oxMHintable
reason, the pverworfced and
underpaid relatives of Uoyd
Mangram who have to do our
colouf ^pa rations made a littte
UCEISICE
GAZUMPING
The battle foi grabbing ifcerices
to produce games is hottmg up,
the tatesL round of deats with
Spanish software house
Dmamic having caused
considerable confusion
between G rem) i n G raph ic$ and
SHversoft/CHL, As Llovd
Mangram repofis in 'Merely
. . . 'h both companies ar©
planning to r^l^jase g^mes
Mconoed from Oingmic. but what
he doesn't s^y m that Silver soft
ihoughi they had an aereement
wFth Ehe Spaniards to release
not only Ssiff^^^oom and Baba
ifh^ but a^8o/?ocAy and
Prof;iriii(io/7. An agreemeni was
thought to have been reached
only a matter of days before Ian
Stewart of Gremlin Graphics
announced that he had
effectfvely ga^umpied'
Silver^ft on The ^a^te^ rwo
games Ian Ellery, Soflware
Deveiopmeni M^mager for the
CHL Group which is affiliated' to
SilversofT, sdid thai he was
disappoinlcd in the turnabout
and surprised, since ihey had
had a long association with
Dinamic-
With competition becoming
so ferocious, running a software
house begins to look more hke
an arcado game every day . .
72 CRASH July 1985
boo-boo loo. artd got the co loti rs
on that pa nicy) ar loading screen
picture out of kirter.
To put I he record st ra ight ,
Gra h ^m L ucas i s ^1a rti ng u p as a
loading screen designer ori the
Spectrum and a jolly nice joti be
does too. judging by his
rendition of ihe cover of CRASH
issue numero uno. Anyone who
wants to contact him to offer
work, encourogefTHmt or RoUs
Royces may do so on HytTwuth
8§3121.
Sorr^ Graham. Sorfv David.
TRIG OF
SMASHERS!
S I avmg away ever hoi Spectrum
keyboards, many miles away
from Ludlow, is a trio of
programmers, Ian Morrison .
David Andet£on and Robin M^uir
have between them achieved no
less than three consecutive
CRASH SMASHES, with thetr
conversiions for the US Gold/
Imagine labels.
Firs! off, ihqircor^versionof
fiiifd Over Moscow tor the
Spectrum was a Smash, Then
followed WorfdS^'ft&s B^seMK
and last bul by no means least,
1 Tappi^r.
Unfortunately, we credited
Robin Muir and tan Rob in sen m
the programmers on WoM
SGfies. which was a bit unfair as
while Robin did the the musiCn
David Anderson and Ian
Morrison were really the mam
men behind Ihe programming.
f^ow we lea rn t^at y p i n the
H ighlands an the avid C^ ASH
r eade rs won 't betieve la n
Anderson when he tells them
that w*3 made a mistake- Well
folks, this bunch ol sassenacha
did slip up on ihe credits and
were sorry.
And they sound like a bunch of
i nler est i ng ie I lows — I mea n,
Three CRASH Smmtiaaon the
tro!. that's goT to be a first.
Maybe weTl get to interview
them neici issue. . . .
Software Editor JEREMY SPENCER /s turned
from an adventure game novice into an
iconodastic super spy by
THEi
CRASH li the first proper magaiiinie to get a look at the completed
version of tht^ new epic aijventure Th^ founh Pforo£Qf. For the
purposes of this article I am not reviewing the gamer that's down to
Derek Brewster next month. All I want to do it ei^plain the plot arKJ
Ihe use ri makes of icons.
Icons are a far batter fonti of
man-machine interface than is
generally found with role play-
ing garner simply because the
gameplay becomes ao much
easier and offers a wider appeal
I ban the more usjjal adventure
text input.
The oame is faased on Fred-
erick Porsythe's book of the
Bam& name whkh details the
exploits of MI5 agent John
Fresion. Preston's task is to foil
Russian agents from carrying
Oiit Plan Aurora. The fiendish
flusskles have cooked up a
^heme that is m contravention
of one of the four secief proto-
cols appended to the Nuclear
Non-ProlileratK>n Treaty of
t968. The fourth of these proto-
cols was an agreemeni between
the USSR. USA and UK Ihal
nonre would iniroduce a nuclear
daviHDa by covert means into itie
territory of any other nation
Having behaved themselves for
nearly twenty years the Russ-
jana are now prepared to escal-
ate the current tepid war
because they feel plan Aurora
would bring about the fall of ihe
NATO alliance.
The plan is simple^ horribly so.
Smuggle a nuclear device into
Britain close to a USAF base and
set it to go off a week or so prior
to a general ejection; then use
lavish disinformation tech-
niques to persuade the popul-
ation thai the ensuing destrud-
ion was the faijlt of our
American allies and their retdk^
less behaviour. Tti^e suffering
and shock caused by the devasi-
ation would move t^e public to
such a degree that a Kefi wing
ant i-nuclea r anti ■ American
government would be elected.
As a resulL the NATO atliancDe
would coOapse and the Russians
would be free to shop at Marks
and Spencers en masse-
The game is divided into three
parls; N&to Documents, Th&
Bomb a nd The SAS Assauk. As a
cods ts demanded to sten rfte
seamd entf third sia^ef, rfte
games mu^sfbiBtpf&Y&dm cormct
ord&f^ r^e /i>sf fwo shames a/tow
thB pt^yBr to input mhrmafiofi
u^ng tcons. The mmn dtspl^y
looks rafher fika those smart
office Mactntoshas, each com-
mand bemg r^fv^senfed by a
sensfbia ptcture, simpiy select
fha appropriate ptctufe and that
command ts invoked^ for
eKampIe^ the use of the phow
icon: when thehandismo^rei/to
the phone a sut> menu appears
that m turn disptays three more
icons. The first aifows yoif to
ptck up arid answer it. the sec-
ond tats you make a caif Itype m
the phone fyumberf^ and the
third mtums yoif to the main
disp/ay. Afi the other icons wo/*
in the same way.
The sub tcans sliaw$ targreai
ffexibifity and ease of use — ^
toid ft'^s a for better and morefim
than typmg fn instructions.
THE NATO DOCUMeNTS
These papers are very secret
and it is clear they had been in
the possession of ^n unauih-
orised person. Preston must find
out how ihese papers where
leaked and to whom, loHowed
by a quick why?" The scene is
Preston's office and the icons
deat with the input and soning
of information. The CenccHri
icon offers access to your files
(throughout the game you will
be storing information for coll-
ation ai a later time and Ihts is
where you do it).
The AaaoiBinent icon gives
you an idea of your progress, ii
telfs you how much of ihe firsi
stage you have solved and what
the MI5 bigwiga think of your
performance, liyou make a bad
decision then your rating will
Elummet but you may be able to
acktraci^ and make good again.
Using Syrvelllmcc you can
assign 'watchijrs' to targets,
these snoopers providing val-
uabfe infonnation all of which
will be brougtit to your attention
via the ^trif» icon. The
Calendar icon lets you know
how much lime has passed. The
Tel^hcina icon is pretty neat —
answer it before the ceHer rings
off otherwise you will never
know what you have missed.
Ulilrties takes you to the gan>e
save feature,
The information glearted from
these different sources provides
you with the means to solve
your fir^T probtemand thus pro^
§ress to Thfj next ttaoe.
THE BOMB
By now you are on the trail of the
bomb. You have an idea about
the plot and even who could be
responstble. The gameplay is
similar to the first e^ccept
Preston is mo^iy out of his
office which requires additional
icons for movement orders and
a Maniptitate icon for ^arch,
eKamlne and UM obieclS- The
Communfevie icon aflows you
to talk to others, via the phone if
need be
SAS ASSAULT
This ^s ihe final pan. At ihisstage
you have discovered the twnb'a
location Usmg the information
gleaned from^he two previous
game you must work out how to
use your SAS force lo gel nd o1
FORSYTH
FOURTH PROTOCOL
ckxti tfiit
the KGB agents and delude ihe
device. One of (he most import-
flnl elements here, apart from
d»senab]ifijg the bomb, is act-
uelly getting to it. You must
setecT the tha best me^n for p^f-
ticular tasks and then scm ihem
wtth the appropriate weapons.
This 1$ the only pan of th^ trilogy
that requbes word Input bui at
Jeast Bll of the accepted comm-
ands can be viewed when
required.
The earlier games allow fair
thinking time^ unlike ihe third
part where you find the pressure
tough— spend too much tin^ in
deep oontempfation and faiEure
h inevitable. Tliroughout there
Sfe stJb^plots within the main
plot and these can lead you
away from the sofution but if
you keep an eve on your rating
Vou should be eble to tell when
you h^ve made a ma^ive
blunder.
In the meant ime, Derek, good
I uck — we 're coun ti ng on ycHj I
CRASH July 1985 73
WHA TA WONDERFULLY
LLIES YOU ARE!
The Walfv F«in Club competrtifm
«ttr#c1iid j| veritable crop o'
«ffitti«s — a ma^^slve* cardb^^rd
box fuller voiir Wally Club
Starter Packs hsi been hilf^
fitJiriQ the tvfl n»ffi tec the p«st
MM pie of wMkftp »fld we've had
an awful pb decklfitg Who
should win the signed {fljUiW
Aided and abetted by the fear-
fen Artroom Aide, Gordon,
we've finally corme up with a list
of ihiriv worthv winners, mil of
whom will pick, up a copy of
Oyff iqh! wjnn^r had CO tie
Oivid &11II, whQSOnt in a
padtage Which included a
special hand -painted Wally
T shirt, WalJy wrisi bands,
membership card and wallet, a
copy of Paul Mannmg's book
How W b& a Waffy together with
tssua one of theclub newsletter
and a wslly goodie price-list.
Davrd Wit I soon be piecing
logeiher the only Wally jigsaw in
the world I
Honourable iT>f?nTif>n goes to
OanM Wathffis. who^ Waliy
Newa waa beaunMiy detjgned
and preeenied; and included a
Fri^htfiil Fashion column^
Wirma's Cookery Corner which
had a recipe for a Walty Cake
which contains 5 Oi of Gar liCr
and The H^avy Hippie Hottinw. A
masier of tho m\x pan. thismari
Ami Thomas L4Hnfion's pa^
elso deserves special mention,
conlainirhg a Tom safetypin and
special WaNy Apprccjati^on Club
handkerchief, comers Ion he
knotting of And head for the
wearing on. , .
The Lennon Wellv Pack also
ooniained a newsletter and a
Kster for a new Wally game
onder if Mikro-Gen know
about it yet > t and was very
neatly put logether indeed.
In a fit ai untrammelled
generosity. Dash Ed has decided
to chuck a CRASH Swealshirt to
these top three winners as well
and nq doubt they'll receive 9
goodie or two ffom Mikro-Gen.
I Also in the Spol Prize WaMybilia
' stakes are Stiphafi Grahem of
Carlisle for his 'Keep Brilain
Waliy' club logo, B% Sloan for
his 'Stronger than a Stagnant
pond' Warly poster. I McAuliffe
of H f ptjnden for « Wa l(y f^eeds
You' poster which owed a little
to the diis^it Kitciiener Tour
Country Nee<ts You' poifter.
Oevid tytoff for the Mba of
having WaUy dad flights —
totally original ths oner as w^s
Robefl Cwradi'sTom "ata. in a
tasteful blue wiih rainbow
m»ohican on the crown. Darren
Brooker's entry was tether dike a
concept folder forw^adverti^ifig
agency — very neatly executedL
35 was Alan nAcftefTura's pack.
P^y stery pnzetteson their way to
you soon chaps, courtesy of
M^kro-Gen,
74 CRASH July 1985
NT
n
TALENTED BUNCH OF
After Much Thought and deep Judging, we
can nowrefease the results of the Waily Week
Fan Oub Corr}petition
A fuJi Fist of the winrveri of th^
game appears on th* results
pag«p SQ if yau haven't read you
name h^re, don't despair v^tP It
Mras a tot of fun fudging the
competition, and we werg
arnas&d at the qualitv of the
antries- But enough of the Blue
Peter drivel . . , see for
VOUfselve!ii
«^^«&nfS
The only tufly JHMcTmartc «nd ptiaire^fiionAl utility
fof frunmlBrnng Spvclrum prc^imma TttHTi .
^D«sch*Di*c »***!• fan •*flii ^&4C<r«nfffl:
0uP|tprAM Q uirntcof 141 TAPi
An HTgBi]HMi& pece at sultware ^^
Vkviluiblf tttUiqpteiiiertK^r:/^ ^rra' iiMi»*^hii
lOettY KtO^I ME N DEDf p»
^iggter
An ■ilMttiM map. Hir ?5ll 1acjiit«i, M •! favUirtt #n^
CTMiupti unwfP PI f«i N4W, fmt^ ■ iiict iw,E m p ii ■ !
ii * -
ff, ^^ jTf Ji^^ '
COMPlfn MUSIC SYSTEM
FOR THi ZX SPECTflUM
3f7*^t«'
UM-pNii ^wAltfL friitriri. h4 fHwlvi^i Jl 'r . L »|^!
lurid NFfdTlrftk. liM4 ll#| fiiNMurf»#if AKJ vMEh lit
^ n ^VtH'MCM* FCWi#il.lf
Z» .J^J.?^ *» •^••■i"P
a_^ Please send SAE for ttetatli.
I enclose a chequ«/PO for £„„
Trade enpquiries welcome
Tiw i<j pign CifMrs" ^l^«^
CI overwas C 2 !
Deli V* n e ^ n u r rn ,1 ^ I >'
return ,
Of do&fl my
Name „,.„„.
Addresi^^^^^
No
Pteas« Mfwl me i iic*^ as appiicntiiel WRiGGLEft E 5
MUSIC TYPEWRITEfl £9,95 G MT Supplement C 4
TRAf^S'EXPRESS: part @ofily C S
Oil parts ori tape C 9,95 Q or cartridge C 14
(?) * (D on lap« C 7.50 U or Rolronics wafer C 12
,,,,,,,,,,, ,,,,, ,_„, .,.™. .....„„„»„ . ,„.,.^.^...^.^....., . Updates of TRANS - EXPRESS Of MU SIC T Y PE W R IT E R E 3
Signalure . ..,,,,,,,.,,,.,,.,,........,.,„■■■,,„ Patt......... ..„.,. TRANS- EXPRESS upgrgdaa from tape to cartridge E 6
♦ **MM*ll**ttttt*"--'
. Card npirr.
95 D
SOQ
.95 a
as a
50 a
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77 Oyn« Road London NWO TOR
24hfl
ordarB 01-625 9463 jS
fen
CRASH July 1985 75
AT LAST! BACK BY
POPULAR
ACCLAIM! THE
naONTHLY CRASH
QUIZ
A Day in the Life
of A Newsagent
Popping inio the local paper
shop for a packet of Granny
Grunge '5 famous Ludfovw
Riverwater Pastil les^ we
were shc>cked to find that the
staff were having a tough
time.
Bemg a newsagent and a
CRASH Competitions Editor
are remarkably similar ^
ei^pected to get up at five in
the morninfl to start work,
long hours tor iirtle pay,
notning but rudeness. ^11 day.
., J had to sympaihise with
the staff selling copiBs of
CRASH and Z&Pi They
were l>eing trampled under-
foot byyoulot!
A sgrtabte subject for a
Spot the Diffemnce CRASH
Quiz, I thought as I slumped
back to the office choking
over a Granny Grunge so
here you are:
Spot the differences, and
pop your antiy into an
envelope mafked CRASH
QUIZloPOBOXia
LUDLOW. SHROPSHIRE.
SY8 IDBtoarnvabyZSth
July. Fi rst t hree co rreci
entries out of the bag win
Sptactrum sottware of their
choice yp to the value of €2b
and a CRASH T-shirt (Mega
B r j 1 1 a nd tota 1 1 y unha i ry /
unlikeacertain Llama Loving
Lummock -MEI. Three
runners up will be sent a
CRASH T-Shirt of their
choice.
76 CRAbH July 1935
IUI2
-i^'N:"!!?""' ;:5'"Wr
from ROBIN CANDY
ft 19 i pity that scim^ of the li«tt#r gamas releasad this mcHith
couldn't have h0«n releasifd ettrlidr because it hu beflfi a prafty
boring month as far as th« p4ayiiisi lips ara toncarnad. LuchlilY some
bright sparks managed to gat aofiw tips in tor HertGri'sDommyRun
on tim«. You sa» out tchadulas are very iinht whidi ts why it may
laefTi to you that wv don't always hav« up to data tips— by the i jma
you ntJid thii I will ba nartjng Issue IWm ptaying tips section Hope-
hilly that will be a bit larger than this because this month I have bmi
alocatBd a smaller space (must be something to do wrtli Lloyd) but I
will try to scrounga mere next month.
Tlia response to the pokes competHion has been far better Than!
cjtpected but alas you will have to wait until next mon^h to read the
resyits. Hop^iully^ rf the standard of entrants is high eno4>gh land it
looks as if it i^t then there will tie a poke^ corner as a resuHp Hlie thit
on« published in th« Christmas Special There were a few wall^
(no offafice to Mrkro-Gen) that sent in lips instaad ot pokes, and
there were a fi^ complete kiiots who saftt In JSW pokes even
though ft specificaliiy said no JSW pokes.
Stalling next month Tm inauguratir>g tUoyd's Long Word Dict-
fonary — no klea what H means} a new section to the tips pages
called the MfNt TIPS DEPARTMENT This h davoted to ail those odd
tip^ sent in that don't get prhlledbacauaatll#|fdpn t go into nnounh
deta il So if you h 3 ve a ny ot theae odtfi and afim tips s^nd them in 10
th6 usMnl address but State on the letter that 1h*y ere lot the Mini
Tips Dept-
By now evfrryone must have noticed that there was a tligfit
hiccup in the Mof^ty Mo ft' poke* published last Issue. I don't kni»Af
where iine 120 disappeared to {a p»en of Mangram sabotage no
doubt) but hete rt is 120 DATA 62, iBT, SO. r3?, 210, 52 Just to
make matters WdfSfr there &iiems to be TWO versions of Monly
Mo/v and the pokes v^ifl only work on one wetsion.
I think that's enough fntro blurb for one month, but just befote I
stun the tips I want to make a quick plea, no more DRAGONTOftC or
EVCnYONE'S A WAUy solutions pleaMl
SHADOWFIRS
WIZARD'S LAIB
Htrt'% • routine lot (h« mm*
g »m« t hat M«ms to bv v«rv
popular with monv r«ader». ItV
aii te a bit to irtpuf , byt i* worth
the eMon What tKi« do*s is to
dive ^ou greatly JACrtsvd Liv«.
Kev«, ErwrgyandWwponi Fot
IIVES and KEYS yog thouid put
in a number Iwiwiiwi^ 1 nnd 2S%.
and for ENERGY »rwl WEAPONS
you vhoutdi tvp* In V or n, H*r«
govt
B REM Wirard I
10 CLEAR 65S3S
20 LET LIVES 4: LET KEYS 5;
LET ENERGY 61; LET
WEAPONS -53
30 CLS PRINT AT 9,2; "ENTlR
Noo1livesnto2&&}"
40 INPUT *S LET LIVES VAL
a$: tP LIVES - 1 OR
LIVES>2S51HENGOTO40
SO CLS: PRINT AT 9,1. ENTER
No of kov» etc (110 2551"
MINPUTaS: LET KEYS VAL
a$ IF KEYS- 1 OR KEYS
2^5 TW EN GOTO 60
70 CLS PflINT AT 9,0 "Do you
w»nt reduced energy lo**?";
AT11.U;(v/nr
80 INPUT ail IF a$ 'V THEN
90 IF aS "n ' THEN GOTO 60
lOO CIS PflINT AT 9 J; 'CN) yw
want unlimrt«d w«apon«7";
ATtt,13; -y/n"
1 10 INPUT nS: IF aS "y" THEN
LET WEAPONS 0: GOTO
130
120 IF a$< >"n"tHEN GOTO
110
130 CLS PHiNTAT9,3, "PlAY
IN WIZARD MASTER TAPE";
AT1V9, fftOMTHE
START"
140 RESTORE
ISO FOR n 232X TO 233Z1 :
HEADflPOKErt.* NEXTn
IfiO RANDOMIZE USR 23296
170OATA22K 33,0.0. 17.1?
1S0DATA0,17S.55.20S,8£.S
130 DATA 21 . 33 , 129 , 254 , 17 ,
77
200 DATA 1 ,62 .2SS , &S . 206 .
96
210 DATA 5, 201
220 POKE csaaexiS
230 POKE 08387 2W
240 POKE 6^300,62
250 POKE 6S30^.25«
260 POKE 65309^
270 POKE 6S3 16,62
2B0 POKE E53 19,256
290 POKE 65336,0
300 POKE 6534039
310 POKE 65341,255
tm
320 POKE 65345,7
330 FOR n 6^379 TO GS«39
READ a: POKE n.a; NEXTn
340 RANDOMIZE USA 65200
35OOATA49,0,»,33,116.
256
360 DATA 1?, 0.64. 1,44.0
370 DATA 237 , 176 , 195 , , 64 .
33
380 OATA255 ,254. 17 . 2S«,2»
.1
390 DATA , 164 , 237 , 184 , 43 ,
3
400 AT A 94 , 62 AIVES. SO . 1 7«
.99
410OATA 62 . KEYS . 50 , 172 , 39
,S0
430 DATA 173 , SB .¥ /1 74 . 99 ,
62
430 DATA ENERGY . 50 . 137 .
IK, 62
440 DATA WEAPONS , SO , 219 .
200 , 251
450 DATA 195.66.94
To cii|>tufe gonerni ZoN position
Manto out$id« his qun iters sftd
drop the transporter b«Eim«f.
Pick the Icick and s^nd sQrn#ono
into Zoff £ quarters. Movfs a
character in tci tNi same locattofi
asZoff ZDHwinthflnirylo
escape AssMnMlwilMlvM
onio the same locaftfofian
ManiD, beam him aboard th»
Enigma A similai method cart
b« yr&Ad to capEgre the enetny
soldii&rs — this savi^ ^nerg^y.
The other ha\i of the destruct
cod« c4in be found on ttis Brldg«
bul it is unKilcely that ytHi wHI
ne&d it becju^ to complete the
?ame you must awiufc the Zolf
This can be done by capturing
or k»HJng ^^^f^Qrm on board. Bv
now you ibouM have compl«t
ed tti« gajti«.
DEATH STAR I
INTERCEPTOR
This ts th# fvp* of tip tti ■! Will be
--iriQ into the ntm Mini Tips
fit ^ri^way (tbe n«w ntterwi-
.veiritfiiswuiimtiin
bf -o w iJ^fing ol Stamford.
On th« sr ' - -'
where v
fights - soimjDQno'^^
ftghi seoftltfl'!«:r*P#rT
This fiHitkf^i shirt nor**
ofMimy craft ever bil i
jOnly dfaw back it Ihst il on^y
I Does anydntf hmm any pokm 7
CRASH July 1985 77
^m
iiiiii»""""'
DRAGOHTOnC
h tucfTvs thai along the wav 1'^^
lost some of voti in itie Va u lis 0<
Locris. The problem seems to be
getting the letter I Go to the
room with I he stx>ol and firebill
bl ft and move the servant ovef
til««tixil, this Will change rt into
• diwt. Open al I the ol her
illiiti in th« vauK and you
ihould have t¥vo keys One of
thne OfMns the chflHst by the
firebiH Open this chest and the
fireball should change mto the
halfmoon and inside the chest is
tfia tettw I. For those ol you who
hm« 90t to Halgor^s Sancrtuerv
find and talcetlwafiwgv hefb.
Now find the skeiatoM end
search lo get the divbig rod.
Wilh I he diving rtKl search the
leaves find pools to receive the
BANE jewel and the Crystal ol
An ti 1 hou g ht U se t he S eal to
open the tombstone and go
down, Read ihe message and
leave everything eJtcept
Halgor's Seal and go through
Ihe door Touch the Seal on the
three spiders befofe they hill
C. Take ihe three spells. Use
RETURN spell to gel into
Kalgor's lon^b room. Search the
lOfHb for the door key to get out
Leave with half maon early and
go to Witchwood to find
Sanctuary lor the key to the
Locrt$ vaults. That'^ your ration
Ot DTdi^onXon: tips for this
month but if ynu are having
tfouble with your energy level
then iu!%t t ry t h ese poke s as sent
m by K v. - ol Birmrngham.
Type in the listir»g and save rt to
auto run fronri fine 10
TECHNmiAN TED
Thftse tlpi on the ordef of the
tasks in 7ei:hnr€^n It'd were
sent in by Mich.-*^-! Rnl^nd ol
West Germany Incidentiy has
anyone managed to CMch Tech^
rifa^n Tcc/lor IfifMlvHvvi
pokes etc?
Yoy must compiece thew t^sks
wiihi^n the time limit? printed by
each one
Ted's Desk by 9 56
Silicon SNcG Store by 9:09
SliceDrMustonby9:Z7
Fuming Cupboard by 9:S6
Clean Room by 10^07
Siljcon Elchmg Plant by 10:22
Canleenby 10:40
Photocopier by 11:1?
Boarctroom by 11 : 25
SI ice Surface Abrasion by 1 1:56
Lase^ Slice Separatiofi by 1 2; IS
Bav7byl?:M
Micro Ch up Mount fng br 12:S9
78 CRASH July IBiii^
1 PRINT AT 9, 1 : "PLAY I N
DRAGONTORC MASTER
TAPE", AT 113/'FROMTHE
START"
M RESTORE
30 FOR N 23424 TO 23467 :
READ A: POKE N.A: WEXTN
40 RANDOMIZE USR 23424
100 DATA MB. 122, 096. 006. 002
110OATA 197,221. 033,000.000
120DATA 017, 000. 000,062. 25&
130OATA055,2O5.0a6,O06. 193
140 DATA 016,239. 221,033. 016
ISO DATA 1 89 1 7.239, 0&6. Q€2
leODATA 25&. 055. 205. 086, 005
170 DATA 062,201. 050. 193. 1t9
leO DATA 205,016. 189. 221. 033
190DATA 124,095. 017. 2 12, <W
200 OATA 062, 2S5. 055. 205. 088
2 10 DATA 006, 062. 2S5. OW. 225
220 OATA 227, 195, 12<. 096
Eea Machine 13:02
Powef Generator by 13:16
Electro Plating Bath by 14:00
Ouelity Assurance Dept 14:25
Abrasion Dust Extfact by 14:38
M^iirhBws Lair by 14:58
We CaN Him Sir by 15 50
The Wage Oepartmem ijy 16:07
After f^ornpleting the Wage
Dcpartmenl then yoy muitOOlO
Ihe picket line, up To the Union
flag and again down to ihe
Puiet line (in the middle!. Frotn
here yoM can now go lefi end
into a rws^ft' room called 0K(
WHEfiE CX> I GET MV REWARD
Go into thE$ room ^nd walk left
through the exit foom to com-
plete Ihe game Vou MUST keep
with in the lime iimit if ypu wish
to complete the game. To plan
out yoyr routes lo inc) from
roomt use ihe tnap pubh^hed in
a Ijack iHSue of CRASH (Mo IS
April, page 70]
I- to «nt«r bnle p*f%on*l And pi-hrf t« e^f f *ip«fid»ri<ip H^* No|m fiv
w*^ing l47f f «i[k|i#i tlut may fi9<H4f tiotrm Thanh yoM
HERBERrS
DUMMY RUN
Here is quite m bit of thAMhitliiii
to Herbert i- Durnmyftun ftl ttflt
j n by J Wa nk [i ng of Kiftn i ngharti^
Fir^t of elf gel the box ^ey and
get the honey pot. I^ow go lo the
roony thai you siert of* in and
ji^mp up on to the box This, will
spring yoy up lO where vOu can
exchange the honey pot for the
teddy. Get the rope. Now with
the rope and theleddy go lo the
CNUCHIEEGG2
Thme afefefief*! lipsM *««t m
by R ob*n t W ^ I « - r War key .
Surprisingly i .efflbe>en
that n'ljjny liys n^i im^^ tjanne bi.il
ayiteafewmaps Eneughofthe
roning and on with Robert's
arcade room with ^m deieki In
ft. The teddy will no and open
the right hand side door; you
can now go through this^ Jump
at the rope in the next room ar^
it shoytci extend inio a room
With a rubber duck; collect this
Laari the pop gun (with the cork
and the pop gyn) and go to the
cast le E ^change the pop gu n for
the (lag and with th« rubber duclt
go to the seaside screen. You
Cin now collect thepebbJe^lo
load the cataputt
There was more to J s letter birt
yon will h&h^e to wait until next
morilh for that Anyway yoy
|ifOb»bly know il ail by now!
DUNDARACH
Now I don't want to give the
ganwawey 1111 tet you suffer for
another month) but to he^p you
off let me iust say that ihec e is m
Goldbar Merchant in V^est Way
and an Aurums Byyer in Crois
Street — enoyngh said
That seems to bail for this month but as i aatd at the start, hopefully
next month will sae a bunwr Itaye of pokes, lips and all the usual
a^iortment of things you neve come to expect from me i'^fkf? fang
wmded tniras -IMh Do fwnaftAer the MINI TIPS DEPT and keep the
pOhM coming in. Okay that's ft from me. Sye until next month.
D O M A R K
presents
>
¥
\
Vv
^
x«
V
^
L
f
r
«
■
i^
"li*
^ >^
J
AVIEWt^ A KILL
THE Computer Game
YOU will become
James Bond
in his first arcade/adventure
AVAILABLE NOW on
Spectrum 48K, Commodore 64,
Enterprise
and watch out for
Amstrad, IVISX and others
€ 6^ Pmaycuofii Ltd GlH*ftii# PuWictllons Lw 19^5
tmMk 116.. 204 Wofpid R£hKl. LcmCli^n SW20 CRN T^ 01 -^7 5624 T^n aM47S G
r
I
I
OflO€R YOUR COPY NCWI
CALL 01-^7 5621 J5/6
Df FICi HOUfHOIiLir
m
To: Domark Lid , 204 Worpid Road.
LCw^don SW20 BPN
D U M A R k Te4w 894475 Q
I coyNTY
H»d#kiiWi-i'i,iiMi
iiHli«ir>i-kKBfea'iiii|ia
.■4.. ..di.»4apvM«44>P» L ,
I
., ..™...„»,..».....„........„.. ........ posToa^
soncf me ..copi^of'AVawioaKiN - Th« Compuier Game"
Bi £10.99 (indudes postage and packing).
l«f>olo^ i ch«que/P.O. lot C ..pp.......p,.....-,,...„. **,*«^...
MycofT^pyiflTts: ,.,. ,.,.„„,„ „...,. ,..,
You may ofider by Access D Vi»a D Amefteaf^ Ej<piWM D bf pom Of
Mptophorre (Ot -M7 5€24i&/6j OFfiCE hOuRS Owlt
ReasedeW my CREDIT CARD D SHF^tufi©:. -..............».«..»....,..- .^^
Accoynt No:
Ejcpirv DaM:
I I M I I I I I I I I M I I I I
1,1,. 4,|,. ■i.iUi^+i.t pi.ji..|,k4.p.^|i + i-M.i+l<|ii-«'H44»+J
HHil lH il l i 'liliW
WMm.H#fi tH I«IHF'
— .cm
l1<
Htm rfJWCRSWjRK
U¥\^i*f\ '.rtt> '"^ril'v I?'* f\f***i ill I
tiifrrfi rjji thr.- Cithrir thr-
Fijilhnrmrjrif, iM-ii .n .
\
(~
MAPOF
THE ATRIUM
SOLVJ^'G THF ATRUJM
■^■.11 1 riir^ffA ifi dually on iIhj iiiiiiii
TOWER CONFIGURATIONS
TbiiHi i lie tfi rm batic towttf €on-
Baymtiorrs: a Qatt; a ShActe and
The Gtti; Ittis »» yvh»r« lEwo
tcrivfln fooi eadi otlrver scrois a
trflfich so lh«t each cafic«l» CHtl
tha othar'a blind apoL It it plain
to •«« thai moyamtm thfmjgh a
fata if impoaattji^a.
Tha Shada: fbynd whara a
towar *ahadaa' a treinch — the
Qf%hf way to paas aiong a iliadad
iranch [§ to traval aloiig tba
ahading towar'i blind ipm.
Tha Sio^k: thi* eonflfiy ration
ia by fir tN niftiMt l-lara. a
towar f acaa down th« lafigth off
tranch, making \i Impoatibia lo
axift anywhara in It
NB. In carta in caaaa, whafi lum-
ing a comaf into a blind tpot.
VOUf lateral Hnomantum carrtta
ymi pyt of tha blind ipot. At audi
timaa it is fdvftablt to orlancata
V^Jftaif io that thip momarttum
mov«i ygy into ttit wvati a! tha
bifndipof, aftartymjrrg. Soumli
trfclrv > but tha diagram hafa
ahoijid halp maka h claar.
No Rmataa: momantumi carfiaa
Hodroid oyt of blind ipot
Th** Atritim k tfip f-ntry lo ibc* lighted i ite The red Side Pa*
k*fe, CFiiipol being ymir fdr^;^*; ^Ims help yow lo fs
]>«' In ---ni
"J F^^J iSi*- lls^^^i-
nvvana batora an«tarinp Mind
ipcrt: momamum kaapanadroid
igiinfftwall.
hi fill' AlfMi;fi>. ItM' h.i
yiiii iIPmI .1 hiWif In Uh'
nic^vinifti'fil'f v**iv liiti^kihv
V
fii'iiiM|i% llii'V .il'^i hli^iJi Ih
(•.ilifkiA.iV% lN*t«Ml»l'li HH|lilllS
1 1^11.11111 lltlll- 1
Kt^'ftiriii vi'iy 4 liiM* li>
iliKf"> li inI hi iiii^ln^ Uii- I
n-fiii I.imI hk iiir.ll \iiiHii 1!
' iPIKffll ri-MJ;1l in v«i<i Hi-iUli
MjIM .t H' i l n -.Ti- n l
I Towat blo^ca
patMga
icroit
|y not Ion
T
Ball providaa
and blMlGa
tovwtr'aflni
ig into
As an adcJM aid. fht? four dis^
Iqwei^ nearby whrch is prod to show the ch
lov.xf iisy.Ji ucL*d by your firing M thrni you are faoing
Tha Siadnjrn
r/ia/a #119 two soiutiofts to thrs —
find tfm W^f^r tmrn for yOi/^9it
bot cWw this on& for rAn/te/
Ufa a t^li to giva you oovaf
from thrQ Towar marhad 1 and to
fat you fat into a posttfon from
which you can shoot Towaf 2.
Drive to A and wait for tha ball to
PASS, than driva on to B ba4ora
4hQ othar ball blodis your way
Shoot Tovirtf 3 ar*d a way oul
through tha toi^am and of tha
Stadium 4a claaf..,.
TbaCrypii
Stiootfnb Towan n>arlcad 1. 2, or
3 pannlm aooaaa to oiia of tha
thraa paaaagaa marhad A, B and
C^ Only ofM paaiaga ii war
opan at a dfna^ To lama tfia
uypt you wiil naad to daacti v«tt^
1
iThtKey
Enltr the K^ carflfulty, vin the
Mind spoi of xf^ Tower marlted
^arffl
n
4^
|»^A»yA »
TlmCidmroa^
Tower 1 perm it*
Eaft-WestcrossJng
Tower 2 pefmils
TheBecrtln:
fGcH>d fimctkm for n^g^iiMmg
blind spots, fhm mm J
Gm into Tow^ I'i MifKt &pot
then UM tftfi ball to iricxk tfw fim
frpfn TovMf 2. Siip Around Iha
corner — but QutcUvl
Drive ihFougli Tower 3^i bUnd
spot deaaJvate Towers 4 arxl 5
and «HJc via Hit douUe-btind
tpot of TcMwi 8 wvf 7.
Th^re is a necemd solution to Tha
Beetle th&i do»n1 inviriv© dt-
aaivatjfig To¥¥ar 4. C^n vchi find
ri7
THE SOLUTION TO TME
ATHIUM
There ere tnwtt wpys to iofve
the jMriitm, though the baijc iol«
mioriis:
'The Garden' {light grMtl);
'The Crossroads' fpurpSe}:
^The Alley MWuet;
'TheKev IdntfcgrMn):
'ThflAHey':
'The Gafderi'^
The Beetle' IbrDrize):
i1>e Wheel' (litec):
'The Garden':
'Th^>Crot*fO«d*';
'The Stadium' fvi^ionAr^
'TheGuiH^Mii'^ T^tM-ip.
'T1>e Lock' Idarkoreen};
'The Chapel' (j^}.
The namee Qlven in ihje Ugi
mm those of the reotcafttp erul the
cakmrm in bfwtatl ii the colour
of the ksaahedrofi Indieecor
when you are In th#t region. Tha
iregioni are lifted in the ortim in
wnich Ih&f fhoiikl he driven.
mil
you, with a bit of pradUoe and
pereeverance^ to sotve the
Atrium . Theri the neict step is the
real thtng. . . . TheMiOPOpoifl-
H
4
<1
Loch:
The Lcx± is a series of four
gatK bkidkiiig the e mieiwe lo
me ChapeL To opwi theee tour
gdtes, turn the ee^m nmvtim^
so that Ihey all point 90itiih. fm
ure to open the Lode will prevent
Oniry to Ihe Chapel.
THE T^\'E
Th^if*
;<j^^
tha gate formed by T{>wers 4 end
5. Shootiftg ToAef 5 will erect a
(iete over nicha 0, ^o time your
ihots carefylly to allow you to
Ma refyga in ni^e E before the
Crypckeeper cxxm^ rolling back
-ogetvoul
I
Guillotme:
This ieihe tfckiesi puaiiie in Hie
Atfhvn to solve.
ITie Gate to the ea^, which
blodcs the exit will onlv dm-
activale when a sequenoo of ^iK
target towers are deiK^tivMed
anjund the periphefy of tfie
trw^. Eedi suocetsive towef
ippeiffi only when the previous
one has bwrdee^veteri.
Towers ifipeoring at 1« 2« 3*
end 4 wifl (o>me you to drive and
firm at the remainirig larQet
toweri from between rwo belli
(The iHrils, being distanced pu^
l&ss than one squere mumK,
vtde cofitimiouB cover for n
Ofiojelriving tHUwaen Them.)
JHf^ SOLLmON TO ^^^
NECROPOLIS
Your ot»|Satve in the Neaopolis
is to find 'the Place of Wisdom'
where you wiil be given an
encoded rnessage. The location
of thm Is a sedet bat you will
linow II when you see some-
thing u nus&ial . ^ - when you tea
sonMthing that h not Mrftat it
HOTUNE TOP 30 FOR JUL Y
tmate
2 ( 31 KNIGHT LORE Ultimate
ai MATCH DAY Ocean
4 / ?; EVERYONE'S A WALLY Mikro Gen
(TERL^
B(77} UNDERWURLDE Ultimate
10 f73) RAID OVER MOSCOW US Gold
ewson consultants
12 { 8} DOOMDARK'S REVENGE Beyond
13 (M) STARST RIKE Realtime
14 /VORLD SERIES BASEBALL Imagine
5 (231 SAB REWULF UUimal
tSffS} DT'S DECATHLON Ocean
[•liii^
^B(f8) LORDS OF MIDNIGHT Beyond
20 f 7/ WIZARD'S LAIR Bubble Bus
WA
The winner of this moTifh's HoiliTi& draw is Craig BartlAtt Irom
KafhpshoTt, Basingstoke; and the foor runn^r^-up &tG KahJi Qit^
COmM of Drpiiwich, Worc$: MS WlHoit frorn Shcppertori,
Midilleftex; David Caimi of Hilisborougti, Co t>own: and H«fify
RILL 'N' FAB HOTLINE PRIZESTI
Thtt CRASH HOTUNE & ADVENTyRE CHAhT is BHtAin i riiMt
ifnportAiTt pofNJIaritY cliart It dapwrids antirelv i^n ycrnr support
and lAn nead vour volffs. Thafa ira two maihrod* for votinii,
Bfther UH th« CRASH HOTLINE PHONE IN. or tut diit tii« ifw^
coy ports wtiich yCiy can fincf on p^aga 122
WhoTh&f vou pliof)# or writi! in. all tha namas go into the Hniline
Bag to ba drawn fnonthlv. Firvt out in botti charU racaivas E40
WORTH OF SOFTWARE plus a CRASH TSMIRT The four
runnare^yp m both charti aacH raorivia a CFIASH T-SHIRT and
THREE kwm bswte of CRASH M^nAftfia li kind cif mini-
iutiEicrifnioii — axiitmg aubicriptJCpna wlH ba apfiropriattlv
extended}
"ADVENTURE TOP 30 CHART.
. ^ l-iHlfTTi
ifiiwrn'O
Iti»f*
rsKi»i^™
1 ei*^'"^".
ILj; DRAGONTORC Hewson Co nsultants
iS*it>W
.fifirKli
l,irf**
.J0'«-
2 ^/2; OUT OF THE SHADOWS Mizar
f 4} DOOMDARK'S REVENGE Beyond
IgroSOyjMELeveieCompijtii
8 ( 8) RETURN TO E DE N Level 9 CompuTinj
largoyleBsmi
W(J3) SNOWBALL Level 9 Computing
<«S:
■sm
«■'>"
11 f Si SPfDERMAN Adventure Inlernatic
12 (—f MOUNTAINS OF KET Incentive
b AVALON Hewson Consutu
14 (23} RUNES OF ZENDOS Dorcas
le^g^HgBANUreTARTRjch^^
18 (fSI TWtN KINGDOM V ALLEY Bu g -Byte
20(14} SHERLOCK Melbourne House
21 (^7i GOLDEN APPLE Artie.
22 (29} VELNOR'S LAIR QuicksMva
/?fiJTHEHQBBITM6lboiirnR
24 (22) THE HULK Adventure iniernational
The CRASH PHONE-IN HOTLINE NUMBER has been discominued. Whitst so many peopte kindly
rrng tn and leave their votes without any fuss, a large pttrc«fit»ge of readers have abused the
service with obscene phonecaHs. This situation has b«en made worse with callers mis- dialling and
upsetting people. It is with regret we mahe this decision, but in the circumstances we have been
left with no choice. So please note that the 3015 number is no longer answerirtg to HOTLINE
VOTERS. Please use the printed forms provided to register your vote which can be found in evory
I
rSEiSl««P!^ ******
ISO l>Cii.*:3«3 ^*»^J2Sv
■l^^— ii^ l^^^^o CJMUf-Wi'^ I'^-p
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you to chi^at. a»^;i^ '
through th« Man^ram fST
detector before being
stamp, rt's HAU. of SL(mf
^oyCwTSKBBtai
SJuimM
9 Ociotwr 84
lONiMMmlMrM
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1lO««Mnb«ri4
IZChristmatJ
IS April 85
fill that CRASH Gap ....
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Jlssito C&rnmand ' g»mc»& Living Guide SincUiir T«lk« CiMit U
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** ^ riftkm Jet Sel Wi lly Mjp fa nie' g AtriM AlptiKom pi
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RAangroiti kxihs bedk Supwr Mint Mir D«at h o( Imag ine Aaad^ rs Awardu Sp«ctfym
i»frid# CHASM Tim*3c Disc Drive
»V Semm f vtkk Mikro^Gftn PmytriXH Map Mini Otfie* Sleva Jmdkn
rwoH Map Tir Na Nog Map O m n icak 2 Milee Si nglMt^n [^0md«r1t> ^,
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pfi yiKtefgroti nd Map ( \ | ,
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VttJfty my aleuftitirtiM U „
WallyMap JggpB| yOow^n
Denluri D«!gfw' 1^
U nd#FW u ridc Map 2 Ti^ _
[Artist David Thmpm
% P«fien ftiC^M^pi Map *
ifm Mizar aHpiDvvtd Row«
Story 2 Fl? eblf3*'^1fic«i*tiv*i L ight Mi
WWi thg «Me«pltofi «f lffy« 1, i^i* «fTy o Jiniii^Pd irtcH-li of ba£i
nunib«r« for reodett v^%0 may bava rriittaci qui on aa rij*r imftu>«s
ifid iof ttwM viritti gapt tfi thafr Bif)daf»^ Amv KS»ua baaring ?77
aftar lh« mini-cofitanta maarti thai tbr wvtraly limited
and before Drid?eririg you ihciiaU phofia x
BACK NU MS01S SPECIAL OFFER
Any tftrm ei four i$mM m^w^ it tfia tif^ ttnw — 40p @lf
total Five irr mcira twuat ofdatad at ttia tame tinna — 2Cip off
aactittam.
PRKCS
2 — 7at7Spaicb
lAf i^ 11/13-^ IBal Mp aech
jal2(Xmai)Btfl.2S
ie onwardi at S6p aacJi
; ami padiaglng: 20p per itafn ofderad
^
IkktiiacMMdNiB
2tXminSf)«cia1V
IIMi
Oiimiflv
t;;^
TV
.iili^
njs
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1
1\:.^ . .
,
fVif loUi (»p p«i Htont
^UbT«til
- 1
multo ^VlDBt/piMiil oraart
iVfiaaiedehijpaiVffeiiiTti'. Hhh ao wtt ni klIimm vty ofaii iMtfi Avid lis ifiii
pf Ijh* fnapgfww — ihii mart i^^^M In iWa yi . B t m ^ ywif n pa» fi tq thm
BACK NUMBERS, CRASH MAGAZINE, PO
BOX 10, LUDLOW, SHROPSHIRE SYS 1DB
I I
CRASH Julv 19S5 85
THEY SAID IT COULDN'T
BE DONE Dept. . . .
The world's very first ICON DRIVEN
Competition, brought to you by no less than
CRASH in association with BEYOND
r 25T/SHIRTS AND
25 SIGNED COPIES
OF SHADOWFIRE
Fans of Termmsf Man will no doubt
sput a certain similBrity of style on
these pages — well 01* feh it was tim&
to put tog«thef another tittle ca^rtoon
strip for your «fiteitainment. The few
philiBtines out there who couldn't
abide TM will no doubt gleefully go
and boil their heads, shan't fael up to
entering this competition, and won't
want to win any SHADOWRRE T-
Shirts
Our Hero^ depict ed here^ finds him^
self in a Spaceport, negotiating his
way around the High Tech eovirofi-
ment Owing to the multipticitv (good
word.foitnd it in Lloyd Mangram's
Long Word Dictionary) of languages
u$#a by the beings that travel through
the Spaceport, all the control con soles
are icon driven.
An Icon is a little picture, used in
SHADOVUFtRE and in this Spaceport,
to represent an option on the menu of
a program. Our Hero successfully neg-
otiated the computers in the Space^
port by selecting the appropriate icon
m every case. But which kons did he
use?
That, dear Competition Entrants, is
what youVe got to decide. Oli the
Magnrf icent isn*t so good on Icons --
he couldn't make up his mind which
icon to put on which eoiriputer screen.
ft's a bit of a ^p-out on hb part. b«t
then you need an opportunity to exer-
cise your skill and ludgeiTient, dont
you?
Study the action in the cartoon strip,
eicamine the icons available and make
your decision. M^tch up the letter of
the icon you think fits best on each
numbered frame of the strip and whia
your entries to SHADOWFIRE COMP-
ETITION. CRASH. PO BOX 10.
LUDLOW, SHROPSHmE, SV8 lOB to
arri V e by 25th July a nd yo u co uld be
yet another lucky winner.
GETMtf
LET IT KHOKf
GOINS -
PICK uisr
OF PESTlNprrPMS
f7
\
uPTttt
TOUGH, \SUP«]£6^;
^ CRASH Jufy 1985
CRASH July 1985 87
88 CRASH July 1985
UP^j^lf^GE. .^S^lpg^i^levlaa
■ ZHUE
I'M r«*d|i for uDur i ni. i rue 1 1 on* i
L
SUBSUNK Adventure with Graphics
Trapped on Ihe sea bed in a scuppered submarine
SHORTS FUSE Arcade/Slralegy
Sam Short secret agent versus Boris and his bombs
DONT PANIC Arcade/Strategy DONT BUY THIS! Comp4lat*on
Amusing and challenging, a game with a difference Five of ttie worst games you have ever seen
Old
oai
037
043
fwesiftD smvEn c«imjooue
ODS frUNBMYmJN Arcacte
Mulii -car cop chase iJxJ stioot-out
Q35 OOWT MMC Arracte/af alegy 033
Amu^rkg ma chtftongins, a 0Afm wttti a clifterefic«
03€
^m VMNO NAIDEFIS V^rGafW
A t^u ol srrategy against the computef Or frteftda
1 ? THE WIU> %]M>I Strategy ^Adveciture i^q
Accused of myrdef, hunt tha raal kHter
014 IWl l4tfcL2k Afcadft/Strategy
Six cofnpartm«KiU. M^ tougher lo de-i€9
MAILORDER
Please stale name of game fend machir>e) and
n y mbers r equ! red E nclose crossed cheque/PO
made payabte to RREBIRD SOFTWARE All olfers
are sybjed toawailabilrty Orders are despatched
promp% Ml pf ices mduswe ol VAT amJ postage.
MAIL ORDER: -FREEPOSTFIRE»Ra
WELUNGrrON HOUS&
UPPER ST MARTIN S LANE,
LONDON WC2H9BR
DOOTY Arcode/AdvenlurB
Twenty tiolds lull of p^rafi^ loof
«MKUNIC AdvafAnwHhOraphteti
Trapped on tho Mi btd In a scuppered aubmarbn^
THE HELM Mventure
An amuarig, sfyfish Ifi-xt adventure
SMOffTS FUSE Arcada/Strategy
Sam Shon seoret ag^nt versus Boris and N^ bombs
P«LlCHOf>ffifl Arcade
Fast and amoofri my fti screen adion
DCMT eyY TIW CompilaTKKi
Five ot tfw worst ^1 f unriNe^ games you have ever 9#en
l*HftENHBt 3000 Af«d^S*rategy
Sixty fcHHif screens tQ mettdown
2.^0)^1
FritAtfft mij th* f^fw^str^ >09@ art ■fridtauiM dT ftlT i f AitcorPivunicdAlorTt [^
RREBlflO SOFTWARE, WELUNGTON HOUSE. UPPER ST MARTINS LAN£. LONOON WC2H 9DL TEL: 01 -379 6755^5626
AUTO RAPtD-fmS JOYSTICK
SPECTRUM INTi
SPiCTRUM UPGRADE KIT
li. 'rrif .JkU . /
URBOH^URFACE
Four gr^ ntw add-c>nsfrQn) Ram, Nymbtf One n
ewrything (bf the Spectrum. .,
Our unique Turbo Interface oiFtpef forms any Spednjm
interface - it works with ROM cartridges, 2 st^idard joysiKka
and there s a tuU expar^ion bus at the rear. TTue Turbo supports
t^empstoa P^eh and I nterface 2 software ^id bads from
cassette- or instantly from a ROM cartridge It realy makes
the most of the Qyiclcshot H's rapid-fire action, and with a
unaque buJlt-in power s^ety device, rt s amazing value at
iust£22.95.
QUI CICSHOr H AUTO R APfD-Fffif iOTSnCJC
The farnous Quctehot 11 ts the top gwie^ joystick wrth a
sleeh tr^er fire button for quick reactions, m aif to fire swrtch
for continuous shooting and a new. improved grip,
RevolutiDnar y txj ilt-in stabilising suction cups ttrnm a sure, firm
gnp-- a snip at £9.95
spfcriruM iNrfRFACC
Boost the power of your Spectrum, or Spectrum + .
This Kampsion-compatibte interface gets the most from your
pimes - etectrff y your enemies wrth real power and
l^^ning-tKt reactions ngfit under your fmgertif^
Costs lust £9.95.
SPiCTRUM UPGRAEX KIT
Jf you've a 16K ^>ectf urn mcro. ths handy and
inexpensive add in kit boosisthe RAM memory to a powerful
48K so you can run the latest and greyest software, the most
exert J ng games around - and expand your own programming
[»ssib!lrties!Only£2L95.
Where tan you get your h^Kfe on Item's arriazir^
Spectnjm add- ons? feu can see them at branches of Boots,
Menzies, Spectrum Ooup computer centres, and good
computer stores everywhere Or return the coupon below.
3b: RAM Electron's {HeetJUdfOept CM / 106 Fteef
Road, Fieet Hamps^//e GU13$f^
Cfem Card hot kw: 02514 25252. ^kcess & Vm}.
Pteasesendme
Spectrum Turbo Irterfaceis) at £22.95.
Qyickshot II Joysticks] at £995.
Spectrum Interfaceis) at £9.95,
Spectmm Upgrade Klt(s}at £21.95.
+£J per {ir*f P+ PtCJ Owreeas; TOTAl £
D 1 enclose cheque/postal order D charge try Access/Visa
□ XL
[111
1 M M 1 M 1 M '
hbmtt
tHwvDat* / /
Atl*KS
Rrvtirfwl*
Wthim
H pioducts ai« Miy coiripBtibit v^ ttie SpedtTUTTi Spe^^
nISviciarMcRNhwii
IteiElKtmcifMlMlhptCM iinRHCftMFM^HinipilingUUSf^
I
I
fade and export enquimsiMlcome
DNICHE^
I
nTECHBNICHEDZ
MORE MODEM MANIA
In the Lait issue of Tsch Hhchm
wm pFomised you a review of
Spectrum modems. On the face
of il rhai was a Huie boldn not
only be^iauso thcrro are so many
modems a boul bur a Fso because
Ihe manufacturers oT ihem are
either a I rnean b) hard to find c)
don't wan! lo be found or d| (Hey
never really had a modem in the
firsc place.
Anyway enough excuses Wc
did manage to decide on the two
mosT impofiani modems to re-
v'l^rw in this^ t^^K}^ ^nd we" II pass
Over thu othi^r for the mtiintlme.
Thi^ VTX WOO iind ih^ Pnjt«lc
1200 FT^udums tire boih front
runners simply because ihey
provide an uncomplicaiad
means of communicating with
Prestel or , perhaps mor^s import-
anily Micro net, ai a reasonaMe
cost- Ttiese «wo modems are
Umited because tiey do not pro-
vide the f#cililies that would
allow you lo communicate
easilv.wich every sort of on line
compiJler ihere is — there ^re
modems ihat do, but generally
they cost a lot more and are
mofe complicated to set up.
When we reach the stage of
escamintng hobbyist bulletin
boards and spectatist databases
we shaft also examine sonie of
the kit that is needed to make
those connect ions. But they will
have to wait for a future Niche.
To begin to a^c plain why modem
a^mpatibility ts nearly as big a
laugn as computer software
compatability, it i^ necessary to
take a look at the workings of
moderns. As stated m ihe Jist
issue Modem is timpiv a short ^
ened form of MOdulator
DEModulator. We all know that
computers hump information
around internally as represent
ation5 of one's and zero s. Com
pufers reaily areni ihai smart:
to a computer l<ife i^ ^ery simple ^
a situation is either b^acic or
White, on or off, one or ^ero. All
this means is Ihai if a computer
wants to tall somebody that i;t
knows The Ai^sw&r it can!
Simply shout out forty two\
weli it can . . . but only because
the corriputer knows how to lum
its version of 'foFly two", 101010.
into our version of 'lorty two' —
42.
So if one computer wants lo
rttat to another computer it witi
do so in a signal representor^
binary numbers, and all that the
92 CRASH July 1985
modem does is to take the
binary message and turn it into a
form that can t)e sent down a
standard telephone line. Fed
With data in serial rather than
parallel form, alt a modem does
IS convert characters into
sequences of notes for trans-
mission, and dac^e incomir^
signals which have been senl
down the telephone line, assem-
ble them into characters and
hand thefn over to its host
computer,
tn the case of the basic Spid*
trum, which doesn'i have a
RS23? pKjrt fitted as standard,
you either need lo gel hold Of a
modem which oonnects direclfy
to the edge connector and sorts
out the interfacing problem for
itself, or use a suitable RS232
interface for your Spectrum
vvfiich should alkiw you to con-
nect it to any modem. The RS232
interface provide on Interface 1
isn't up to the job, a though
people BW rumoured tO Be
working on thaiprobliem.
Once youVe got a modem
attached to a Spectrum ar^
working, the next problem is to
make sure that it is compatible
with the modem at the other <H^
of the the hne. They must both
talie the same langtaaga in orcier
to hold a successftjT convefs-
ation. A number of variables are
involved, the two most impwrt^
ant of which concern the speed
with which the signal is sent and
the pilch of the notes used
In Europe we have two mam
standards CCITT V 21 which is
for 300/300 baud communic-
ations, and the V J3 for 1 200/75.
The baud rate is a measure of
the speed at which data is trans-
mined Typically, 300 baud
represents a rate of about 3)
characters a seoorKl, whtl^ 1200
baud is aboul the fast^si ^peed
of transmission sch^evabi^ on a
normal telephone line^ and
works out at about three lirwa of
tajrl on the Spectrum screen per
second,
Tlte V 2t standard is used bv
mo^ hobbyist bulletin boards
and on-line serv^es If you want
a modam to talk to Ihau tih^fm
then il must be ab^e to adopt that
standard I neither the VTX or the
Protek c&nl The most widely
used standard now being used
by Spectrum owners, due
largely to Micronet, is the 1200/
75 baud V 23. This is the
standard adopted by Prestel
which sends frames at 1200
baud and receives instructions
at 75 baud. It was this standard
that the VTX end Protek
modems were designed to use-
Some buUetin boards cater for
1200/75 communicationsn how-
ever, and user-to-user commun^
ication is also possible with
these modems.
If you h^ve a bijrnirig desire to
go truly international and com-
municate with systems in the
USA or Canada, then you will
have to consider yel another
range of standards. The Amer-
ican Belt T03 IS Similar to our
V.21 and the Beil Z02 is like our
Prestel (V.23) standard except
that Sell uses different pitches to
CCtTT systems- Modems are
around that can switch between
all these different standards —
but at a price. We hope to bring
you newi of one of these, the
new Miracle Modems Spectrum
version soon There's no point
on lashing out on super whizzo
(and eKpensive) hardware if
you r ma in interest is i n ta Ik ing to
Pr^^tel and Micronet. however.
Apart from tho- communiC'
ations software ne#d**d in 4f'vc*
the modem it&etf and sort out
such housekeeping problems as
word lenqth ar>d parity so that
the receiving mooem on a sys-
tem is sent what it e>«pects to
receive, a further problem can
arise from lack of compatability
with software. Clearly the com-
puter I hat you want to talk to and
your computer both need soft-
ware to organise a multitude of
functions be rt simply transmit-
ting chunks of tewt to another
computer or sending a message
to a mailbOH on a large system-
The problem irs that each com-
puter h^s a different view of the
outside world For example,
problBms mav bo caused by
tncDmpetJble charocier sets
Prestel wc>uld never uncierstand
what a Spectrum SYMBOL
SHIFT keypfvis was meant to
mean, but softwarfi converts it
to be sent as a star — that's fine
because the Prestel machine
knows that the star maans an
instruction is on it's way= Saves
a lot of argument and down lime
with orumpy oompuiers does
the software
Remember that no matter
how sman a modem is, without
the software it's just a pite of
chips and capai^iiori. The soft
ware that comes with the VTX
and the Protek modems is able
to convert the Spectrum's
output into a form understood
by PresteL and a few nnore
clever tasks besides
The Prism \rfX 5000
Supplier Mod am House.
Price: £49 9i
This modem reaHy seems to
have become the standard for
clever people la recent survey
shows that most clever people
own Spectrums Source: S£OS
f9S5} The princtpal ad vantages
with the VTX a re two fold. Firstly
the software is held on ROM
(read oniy merrvoryJ whjch
means the machine is raring to
go on power up so lime is saved
especially when, as often hap-
pens, your conr>ection with the
mainframe is broken and you
have to re set tfie Speccy th^i?
second advantage is thai the
modem is hard wired, plugging
into the phone socket and then
Ihe phone plugs into the back of
the modem. This greatly
reduces the chances of the
rmxfem being interfered with by
outside noises? The software
has most of the functions that
you could need including auto^
matic log on and off Micronel
frames can be saved lo tape or
microdrive and printed out, you
are able to download the soft-
ware or compiJe messages off
line loaded to lap^ ready to be
sent when you are on line. The
VTX can be used as a user lo
user modem to allow you to
communicate with other users
so long as the same V.23 stand-
ard is observed. Other software
is available for the machine
which allows you contact data-
] VECHDNICHEaTECHaNICHEJTECHaNIC
□ GETTING IT ON
MICRODRIVEi
Interface 3 r
Supplier: Evesham Micro '
Centre
Retail pdce:f:39.95
, Bv now you wii^ have »Mfi i tew
: H horn the ch^0^ at Evesham
".'irro Ci?ntre cL^iming that th^y
|c#n seil you a machine thai
I ir^fhsfefs atiy p*iogfam to micro-
iMve Well we wouWnH blame
^QU it you took it with a bucket of
salt: We did. I m^Mn to say trari^
ter any software, get p««t ^//
protection? come Ort chet|»_
Evesham Mcro if e not ei< agger
atin^, Interface 3 will toad every
game from tape to microdrive,
with no eKceptions. CRASH
lechnospert Franco Frey tells me
that the actual etectf onics m the
boK are pretly Old hat, not to say
che^p, but ih@ w<iv the thing has
been worked out makes it a
matteffHOce To transror if^B&w
note Fanatical avo France of the
wotd copy!) a program follow
nine iimp]e steps:
f. Attach int^ffBc& 3 to 5p«-
3. fmdpfsce in game^ wh^r& tr
% stops m dfsplay
5- fnseft t^sfnk rape &nd hit sny
ff. W&tch fife $&vs
7 Tak& off mt&rfac& snd ftwrf
die transfer softw&re
g. follow profTipis to io&d the
gBma /ite
9. folfow prompis fo s^v^tife
With new header ^q rrt/grorfnvff,
That's ft. T?te whote operation
can take less than fifteer^ min-
utes arvd what you Qet at the end
is a periiect microdrive versian of
the gume that starts from where
you stopped ir.
The device is totally passive
until yoii press the button, so no
game can deted Pts presence.
None of those smart ami-
hacking methods will work be-
cause vou don't have to load ihe
gan^ from the start — so they
may as well not be ttiere.
me software supf^^ied with
the mterfaca even checks
through the loading screens for
hidden machine code, if there
isn't any then why waste space
saving the pretty piccy? One
other useful little Trick the box
can perform is to take a srhap-
shot of whatever is on the
screen. When you press the but-
ton, that screen is ihen saved as
aSCREENA
At nearly £40 Irrterface 3 is a
considerable investmeni but m
it seems to beat alt other transfer
systems hands down ii is a cert-
ain method of getting your fav-
Durjte games onto microdrive
and thus onto your computer in
a mudi fwtof tin^. Since you
have paid out so much for chose
anyway, and many software
houses seem to do htile to help
you utilise then^. it niust be
oonsklefed a worthwhile inve^-
nf\ent_
bases and: bulletin boards thdi
usa the same speeds but iran^
mh text in an rolling form as
opposed to scrifen by screen.
J^wcnei by Stephen Adams
eosis C5.9B and a sinrrilar pick-
age by Stephen Gold can be
downloaded from Micronet for a
small charge.
:»o^
ThcPfotek 1200 Supplier
Protek arHJ high street shops
Price: 09 9S
The baneiv powefed Procek
machine is CIO cheaper than the
VTX^ but it presents the disailv-
antages of havir>g lo foad the
software into your machirw
before you can go on line. Also,
the modem Is acoustically
coupled^ which can give you
some very undignified mom-
ems as you try to squidge your
handset into the two rubber
ujps. If you have a tfimfone or a
phone in a style other than the
traditional one th«n forget it, but
being battery powered he
modem has certain ponahilily
advantages I only really advant-
ageous when you gel your Spec-
trum running off Datteries too,
though!) Whil:e the software is
as useful as that of the VTX ii is
not as easy to use since some
functions require you to load in
the odd chunl. H you wan House
the modem user to user you
have to agree which one of you
is to be the original sender and
who ts to receive and then load
i n t he app ro p nate code With the
VTX modem you only have to
sirde a switch.
Conclusion
In my opinion thg extra £10 For
the VTX modem is more thar*
fustified. It is easier to u» and
simple to set up. it b moderataty
kliot proof as weH as being neat
and tidy when in operation The
only actviiitage that the Protek
may hsv« is that the acoustk
coupler could, in theory, be u sad
with any conwuier that can
supply rt with RS232 input pro-
viding you can wtife. buy or
scrounge the appropriate soft-
ware to drive ft,
CRASH July 1985 93
DTECHUNICHEB TECHBNICHEGTECHnNC
I.
FRANCO FREY, now fast becoming a leading authority on how to draw things on a
computer screen, concludes his review of the Creative Sparks utifity that ainjs to turn you
into an artisitc genius
LEONARDO PART2
Having got rid of the general drawing facilities of LEONARDO in the
last issue of (^lASH, several of the more exotic routines such as
windowing and the programmed drawing facility can be examined.
Leonardo must be the most comprehensive drawing utility for the
Spectrum, offering a muhitude of options which might or might not
prove useful to the user. Careful examination should avoid any
disappointment as to how useful alt the various functions are and
should also provide some help in assessing the performance of the
competition.
WmOOWINGAND
PICTURE
ELEMEmS
A window may be defined in the-
picture bv senir^g the two
opposing corner points of th«
tmr»e. The lower left corner is
sat in cursor mode by pressing
kiiy 2 whh ihe cursor m the
desired position, the lop righi
COrmef with key 3. To display the
edge o-f the window Isey 4 wtIF
provide a black frame Key G wtii
SSv^ thi^ winder element into
the computer memory as pic-
rurs number 1. To recall ai a later
stage the stoned picture, key 4
wiirreve^l the window. Key N is
preswd and the d^sjred picture
number entered. The program
rhein prompts for the display
mode This can tie either print
addn common of difference,
executing either replacep togk
or, toQic and and exclusive or
opefdtions with the existing
pixels within the window The
different modes provide inter-
est Eng effects and these c&n be
used to advantage^ For e^mple
logic and fcommon) can be used
!o nil solid objects on the screen
with any patiem created and
saved as a window. The picture
elen^ent can be u^ed as a brush
by setting the m and y steps to
the same widiti and height of the
phcture element and after having
pressed L and toggled the
loysttck button or tne pattefn
can be painied by moving the
cursor over the screen.
MAGNIFYiNG
PARTS OTHER
UTtUTIES
CAfUfilOT REACH.
Magnifying makes use of the
windowing technique. Onfy a
small area of the screen can be
magnified. The pfogram wiH
warn the artist if the afea setad-
ed is too bi^g. Placing the cursor
at the lower left corner and
pressing D, moving lo the ypper
right corner and pfessing O
again wif] locate the area to be
magnified. The cursor is posit-
ioned in the receiiver area and
shift D wiEj initiaie proceedirioB.
Ptempfs for jf and y magnifies
alion factors musi be answered
and the program vvill copy the
cfifiirfvf SMjrirs
Leonardo
designated window in magnify
led Tofm. By rnagnifying onto
the original window area the
process can be repeated several
lirnes
UDGS AND
PRINTING
CHARACTERS
UOG^ ar^ created in piJteK cursor
nrtode with the u« of the plot-
ting or drawing techniques
cfescribed in part one. Once ihe
graphics have been created, the
cursor is posiik>ned at the top
left comer of the area to tm
stored and the cursor step is sat
to 8 wide by 8 dimp. After press-
ing key T the pn>gram prompts
for the memory location of the
UDGs. This can be either in the
Spearum's usuaE UDG i^r^a A
Up or «nto the mam ^ofe which
can hold up to 774 cheraefacs
(select any of 1 - 774 start pos-
itionsK K ar^ V block siie is
esked for and the graphics Are
copied into memory. To display
the UDGs character cursor
mode must be saleded and
chafoclers printed tn graphics
mode. This can be done with key
P. which sets a hne of lest or
UDGs Thar is repeatedly printed
at the cursor position, or key L
which prints a block of UDGs in
various ways on the screen. The
function prompts for the UDG
memory area (A-U or 1-774} and
the block siie, The block can b«
inverted hortjontally, vertically
or not at all by answefing
Srompts and sImHarly rotated U,
0. 1B0 or 270 degrees clock-
wise in fact by combing use of
Save UDG and Prim Sioct any
area of the screen may ba invnt^
edandor rotated
94 CRASH July 1985
]
\HCHEaTECHBNICHEnTECHUNICHEBTEC
PROGRAMMED
DRAWING
L&o^sr^o provides d routine
dr^wiiiQ of figures and pattarrvs.
This progr^nvma^ble feature
provklK Ihe facility for drawinig
patterns and ahBpes. singly or
repel It ive al linear or nonlinear
scate ejK pension. Translation snd
roimion> Key E displays the
Draw Table. The Table displays
al<l the pararrveter^ which car» be
set and is also a m^nu of ava^iS
able options withrn Prosrom-
rrwd Draw Eac*i parameter can
be £et in turn or skipped with
Enter. Scale $et$ the initial scale
factor for [he hr^ drawing oper-
atior> vvith th« beginr^ing point
as origin. Sc^ie increment is the
amount added io the X and V
scale factors after each drawing
operation. Stan gi^es ihe reiai-
Ive position to the beginning
point of the start of the riext
drawing process. Link is the
pomt relative to ihe start poiint
From which sucasMttve drawing
operations lake tlhair beginning
po»nt. Displacement 13 Ihe a bsoT
ule di$platemeni for each suc-
cessive drawing operation. Boi-
Qtion i» the initiaE rotation in
degreea of the first drawir>g
operation clockwise about the
tpiginning point Rotation incre-
ment is thia additional amount of
rotation lo sucoessive drawing
operations^ Cyci&s is the
number of dr^rvvinp operations
to oc^ur auiOmatKatly. Three
different brush modes may be
used. A (Picture) is used for p4c
ture mode end the picture
element together with the mode
o1 drawing (print, add. common
or difference) has to be entered,
B (Coords) is used for figure
mode ar^d the first and lasi
coordinate pairs to tie used from
the Figure TabJe for the creation
of the figure. The Fpgure Table
contains up to 10 coordinate
pairs, so that quite complex
base figures may be used. The
Figuri^ Table may be called up
with 1. C (Brush Mode) rs ihe
mode in which a redanguiar
brush is used rf Brush is seced-
ed. The brush sJze is determined
by the scale factors and the
mode can be set independer^tly.
This can be Plot. Unploi or
Invert. 4 drawing modes mav he
selected- D (LirteJ will |oin each
cycle with a line C (Figure) win
draw the defined figure at each
cycle of the programmed draw.
F (Picture) wm deposi.t the
defined picture eiement at each
cycle of the function. G (Srush}
will draw the rectangular brush
at each cycle of the programmed
draw. Last there is a Heset opt-
ion (H) which w4l rmel the first
eight parameters to their nnitial
values AJ though compfex. the
programmed draw option i£
quite fun to use ^nd easily
learned ^ The oompieacitv will
guarantee some rather fancy
looking graphics, especially if
enougn time is spent playing
with tne various parameters.
SCROLUNG
Leonardo provictes the facility of
scrolling the entire picture or
only the part within a window.
Scrolling in any direction may
be accomplished t^ scroliing in
several steps. Picture and
atirihuies &m scrolled individ-
uaHy. ScrolNng the en h re picture
may therefore be useful for aenl-
ing attribute border proUems^
TEXTURE
Cover is a function which gener-
ates inieri^sting texture. It uSMa
scrolling technique The picture
is scrolied a distance and in the
direction chosen, and copies
ttself repeatedh^ filling lo the
edge of the screen. The entire
screen Of only the pixe] wmdow
IS 'covered' upon selection and
after giving the direction of tt>e
scroll movement the repetition
interval must be entered.
IN CONCLUSION
Leonardo has a tremendous
amount of functions to ofifer #nd
anyone wilh the doodle bug will
get lost in the ma^e of options
provicted in this packeoe. The
Programmed Drawing Feature
alone can keep anyone awake
for several nights. As a serious
screen devetopmefic tool for
fiirofessionals the program is too
ancy. Here Mefboam^ Oraw
with the eKceheni magnifying
option for detailed pincel work i^
still unbeatable. But L^onnnfo
aims a I a very different user. By
providing an immense amount
of special functions L&cn&rdQ
can be seen as a game in its own
right, where the user takes a
very active ar>d creative role,
Leon&ix^o is very user friendly
with its many menus and tables,
Loading, saving and creating
pictyreSp UDGs or r\on screen
graphics is Straight forward and
mere is a prompt round even^
corner leof^fdo uses a
signalling ayst^ri to mforni the
user of the program's condition.
Whafiever operating, the
pinognin draws a colour coded
strip to indicate the state of
affairs. This is especially useful
for the programmed Draw
mode, leaving no doubl as to
whether somethir^ awful has
occurred or not. The 100 paf/b
manual is wrinen as a ftrelgrht-
forward introduction to all the
operations arxi functions of
Le<m&rda with extensive e^tam-
ptes on Ihe Programmed Draw
mode. Now, vvhat about ell
these competition entries. . .
Program: Leonardo
F^rodticvr^ Oreatrve Sparks
Momory requirad : 4SK
Retail price: C9 36
□ KEEPING UP WITH
THE SIDses
Tfie OkTronics three charmei
sound synthesiser is a fairly
nifty little gadget which, for HJO
odd, upgrade your standard
BCEPlng Spectrum to a mschine
with sound capabilities compar-
able to those on a BBC or
Amstrad. Based on the AY-3-
^12 progrpt^mable sound
generator (^ip» the unii comes
complete with a plug in spedcer
and cassette b^ed software to
get you started.
The chip Itself has fourteen
registers, which may be ac^ss-
ed from the BASIC OUT' com-
mand, and sounds rnay be con-
trolled on the three channels
available This direct approach
is probably not for the beginner,
and to avoid total despair on the
part of the riew user Dk'Tronigs
hmm thoughtfully writier* »me
software which allows yoti to
interact with the chip by driving
a Cursor round the screen. Ois^
played options may be selected
with a single key press — or by
pressing Tire' if you've added a
Sinclair or Kempston loystick.
Adding a joystick is advisable,
as it makes programming sound
effects Irom the ^reen menu
Simplicity Itself, as ihe software
is really very siick, taking the
pain out of eMpennnentation and
Thm&kTt&nwi Sound Gonmrmtor inimrfmc*, hiding m thrmm- i;hAfifmI*wfuii:h^mid^MiHimiimtfmdbf
CRASH Juty 1985 95
DTECHnNICHEUTECHaNICHEDTECHn
altewing the coimptet# novice to
stall mihing « respiectabl^
rachmv«fy quickly 1
U^ing tm demo MuflJ^ Om-
ign#r software, you are able to
program up to thr&e tunes [or
Baqyences of rounds f, usmg all
three voices simuUaneousty and
'record' them into memofy.
OrK;e you've set up a voice witti
the at&ocitccd paramatera of
waveform (<jiiher tone or noiwh
envaEoping, attack and decay
and &h^p«, notes may N enter-
ctd into memory by moving the
cursor op and down a keyboard
displav^d at the base of the
screen and preying fire' to
^ter a given noi^ At. eich note
is added to your growing comp-
oeitjon, h is played back to you,
and a: simple editing fyncition
allows you to spa>« ba<;k to the
last rujte added lo the stream
and delete or change il.
four tunm.
The instruction booklet that
CdfUM with ihe uml is the tini-esl
bit tmpenelrablep but atl the mf^
Ormation you might require to
program the unit directly Is
there. A kittle time speni ex pen -
mentir>g with the demon si ration
$offware would certainly pay
dividends if you wished to delve
into programming I he sound
eh^p directly. Most peopte would
probably be Quiie happy to stay
with the software supplied.
One minor niggle with Ihe
program t$ the fact that you
cannot JmmediateSy hear tlie
effect of changes you make to
Itie wave formations — tt s nec-
essary to keep scampering
down to !he screen keyboard
with tha cursor to play » note,
which r^n get a bit frustrating.
The unit itself, quite naturally,
fits onto the edge connector,
and sound is output via a mini-
jac* socket on the top of the unit,
which hat a little volume knob
for you lo twiddle. [>on't be sur-
pfised if you soon get disapp-
01 n led with the effect of twiddl
ing this knob when the speskef
supplied is connected — the out-
put level is little short of wimpyp
and i$ b^er suited to head-
96 CRASH July 1985
phones. Connecting the output
lo your stereo is also a viable
option, especial^ if you want to
hear the delicacies of the env-
elope shaper. tMJt be careful. It
would be fairly easy ^o tSarrtage
your speakers if you don*t watch
the volume level.
From the musical point of
vieWr the unit isdefiniiel v a tot of
fun, but It is not really capable of
generating the more campleic
sounds that a musician might
expect. The attack and decay
isn't quite true to form, altering
the pitch of sounds rather than
the amplitude (volume), which
IS a litlFe naughty, and not the
way a true musk synlheshser ^
works. Similarfy, the manner in
which the wav^ forms are man-
ipulated by the envelope is inter-
esting, but not really Mnducive
to really first reie music
synthesis.
To be perfectly fair, the unit is
sotd and described as a sound
synthesiser, and for the purpose
of eicperrmenting and gener-
ating inter^stirkg sounds (which
may be incorporated into your
own software!, the package rst>-
resents good value and rs well
wpported bv the Music Design ^
er software. If tuneful and more
complex sourvds are your goal,
the DkTronics package could
prove a biit of a let down.
However, if you are thorough ^
ly bored with Ihe FX>s$ibilities of
BEEP, and want to go a stage
further in computer sound
generation, the facilities offered
y the sound Synlhesisef will
aFlow you rnto Ihe same league
as BflC and Amsirad owners. If
you reafly want to be a computer
musician, then there's probably
not much of an alternative to
lashing out on a Commodore 64,
which contains a very smart
custom sound chip by tf^e name
ofSIDl
INTERFACE
WARS!
Thm BLOMO Pae«c«ttvr . ml&w morion Mg ti jp la y^
int$icMarMiHt9(*tn^f^fiPmtac0if^afttM.9B
LED
'^4*.
O^tmi'^ Swj tchdbia ioY^tfek intmrfmcm ^ 3 ff^r tha pricm of
Well, we were right* Nkld Valley
Micro PrcKkjcts were in touch
with us shortly after ihey read
the review of DkTronics' speed
controller in last Nich« to let us
know about their two products,
the Paoeaettv and Program-
mable PtcMMtar.
They also asked us to poini
out that SLOW) will cra^h $ome
firograms if freeze frame is held
or too long on some Spectrums
as the memory refresh cycle is
affected — but then so will the
DkTronies unh we are told. Nidd
valfey aiso mentioned that they
hAv& a Patent application pend-
ing on the device which could
rnean that sorrieone mhght )ust
end up infringing their Patent
rights. , . .
Nickl Valley also pointed out
that their SLOMO and }oystk:^
interfaces are Qukkshot II com-
patible, which it appears, the Dk
device isn't-
The basic Pacewtter has the
LED that Ok's could have done
with to let you know when the
SLOMO was active, and res^
ponds to the Kempston proto-
col AIMhts for CI 4,M,
The Programfnable version,
as its name su^ests, allows you
to program the joystick move-
ment keys into its memory. ^^^
has the same SLOMO conrrols
as ris little brother — t29.95 for
that one.
Interested partres may contact
Nidd Valley Products Ltd oil
0423 864488
•Not to be left ouL Oatel Elec-
tronics announce their switoh*
able joystick interface, which
accepts Kempston. Cursor and
Srncfair Interface 2 profocoKs^as
well as the rapid fire texture of
Quickshot 3 lype loy sticks . . .
nz,99 for ihat little black box of
goodies. They live on the ertd of
37«2 273819
Ever felt spoilt for choice?
~N!
I
1
W^m^^-- ^^^H
'* V La "^"^ '■*
CiHVK-iS
SPECTRUM 48K
AMSTRAD 464
£9.95
GARGOYLE GAMES LTD.. 74 KING STREET, DUDLEY. WEST MIDLANDS DV2 8QB
Tc-lm>hone: (Sales) 0384 238777 {GeneriilJ 0384 237222
THE EASIEST
WAY
BUYING
SPECTRUM
SOFTWARE
YOU WILL
FIND!
V T^T '^■■■^'^
^K Ail you hav<^ to do li rill tn the form bt-r jw . j
■ it off. W€ still offtr a FAEEPoS ^ orcterinv^ ^
Vp but please rcfncmber that it can tak'
f !c>rig€r to reach u% than i>r^ ^^%% 4
P ' Qu would prefer a specfJirr .rt . v»:ry ihen "
' rcommend you use a stamp. Ord<^r^
^ ^ i f^d with a first class stamp ^
|[ ched v^ithifi 24 houri by f po^t.
^HP ANY OF THE SOFTWARE fl
^■^ REVIEWED IN THIS tSSUE* OF K
CRASH MAGAZINE MAY BE
ORDERED BY MAIL USING THE
FORM BELOW-
CRASH MICRO GAMES ACTION ORDER FORM
TeWp^honi Lydlow (ASM) S«10.
^eaie tend me the- following cities: BIcKk cjpltah pIciKf su^vcr^bftv-'MiiifedfWvy-pl ^lii^fQiFCoA*fHM¥4Mr^
Tlik
Pfoductr
hit^dirtp in ^ I ncbdt V A T Cr»4^ Nit^ o
C^mtt Acuon jni ki nq chirft lot ^iT4ff
l>iciuid id J Wp ptr Htm for po^t Jnd
fi-icli>n| Outiida Eure^. pHtii4 wHm ftrn.
pNiiciE orsf rri pi ^4 ^e 10
tIMSHHiCftO From
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CRASH MICRO, FREEPOST (no stomp required), LUDLOW, SHROPSHIRE SYS IBR
ADVERTISEMENT
A WALK IN THE PARK
FOR SOME TME nov^ one aspecc of adventuring hu become aver
more prominenl in my mind as C^ve walked lh rough A tocal padi. Th^
park has a river flowing through it. building of some interest, both
genuine hiBlortcal slructures and more Tanciful foiti^s, alongside the
iraditionai embellishvniriteof acity park — layers of flowei^sof ev«ry
hue lining sinuous pMhwttyi. What etruck mg on my fir oil was tha
r«ar»&aiion \hm every device needed to fill an adventure lay noi m a
dartcenad room festooned with the laiest bits of microcompuier
hardware, but out there m the sunshine and ^udd^n summer rain.
Why not base an adventure on this very park? This ^t me Chinking
abo4Ji adventuring and microcomputir^g and wh^re it waft all going.
Why indeed had adventures come 10 be bated upon myth, legerid
and fanta&y when they couid concern themselves with ihe real world
ind all Its infinite variBty and natural aburidanca.
1 noipced a Imle while ago An artist faaturad in CRASH w^nt to »\\
the trouble of obtaining a real tpe€Jmen before ^UTempimg lo dr^w
an ani- RiohiEy, the anist K^dgad no better fool for the subject could
be infused into hia work than that derived from the real thing So a is
with novelists. Authors, even when ihey c^n't visit the real location
which provider the bacitdrop 10 thetr book rely upon the mo&t auth-
entic second hand accounts th^ can find^ such as tourist guides,
street meps atid other novels, and by so doing^ anf ich the final draft
Adventure, lintil greater n^mory and perhaps finer resoluikan
can produce more meanlnghjl graphics, are closely related to the
short rvover and it is nothing short of amaiing that no-one has
atien>pted to write an adventure which deals with a real life structure
Of situation. Surely there is an ^rea between frivolous amusffinenl
and erudite education where microcomputing can play a part in
broadening our whoie perception of where studying and work fin^h
and leisure and relaxation begin? It seems only fair that micro-
compyters should cushion the bumps along the road of social up-
heaval which leads to the revotut^oniry world of computers and
robots (remember them? They were #11 the rage on Afternoon Plus
ibout two yeais ago when discussing the fulurei seemed like ^ good
idea).
How about an adventure where the subject matter concern* itself
ivith a real Scottish castle arid & story which gives an auihentk:
r«?ndition of its history? Or perhaps it could traverse a real park (say
Hyde? Part in LOnrdon, Central Park in New Yoik Or your local
Jesmond Dene) whereby at the end of the adveniiiirethe player has
not onty enjoyed an entertaining game but has also picked up the
rud iments of some to u r ist spot.
Two games this month nad me thinking even rtKire aboui the
possibilities. Although I do not know rof certain, I think an
Mfiena^fv&n CasUe does not truly exist in NW Scotland, and Whan
conskiering the layout of the submarine in Sub Sunk I find it hard to
believe the author has consutted any reputable works on the subject
of submarines or iheir internal design. It is hard to imagine indeed
any author embarking on a novel concerning submanr^e warfare
Without first consuUing I he facts so freely available to anyone with
the Eime and tenacity to unearth them. By and large, considering the
high standard of pubtished novetSp most authors look on research ai
an essential pf elude to writing itaetf. It is my hope that advenlura
authors will consider carefully their subject matter and what relev-
ance it might have.
BORED
OF THE
RINGS
PrcKiueer: Delta 4
Software
Retail price: £5.95
Language: Quill &
Illustrator
Author: Fergus McNeil
When I was at tech college
taking one or two A levels
(makes thom sound like long
cool drinks which in many ways
ia what they were) I remember
some member of an adiadant
peer grouping going on about
some great book he had just
read eniiiied something like
'Bored^ of the Rings' which app-
arently was a send up of the
Tolkien classic^ I was at that age
(arid a good age. meihinksl
when things Nke Toliuen and
Star Trek were Such brilliant
Stars against the dour backdrop
of everyday existence (activities
like hoovering corduroys and
s«art:hing for green biros that
work) to denigrate, such was the
esteem in which they were held.
Of course the years have
brought their diwig«a {I now
regard hoovering oorduroys a
perfectly respectable recreation I
out my increased background
cynicism onjy gently impinges
upon these greal works as I still
largely regard them as time^-^
classics (Tolkien The incongruity
of believable fantasy. Star trek a
fresh, scientifjciity optimtstic
lookatthe^turel.
Now you're thinkir^g, this can
hardly be a kindly introduction
to a game which satirises Tolk-
i^en's greetesi w^rk Well, des-
pite aarly reservations^ I can say
this game Is mostly amusir^.
which you might exfject. but fur
ther, is Irutr enough to the orig-
inal to be an interesting version
in its own right. To summarize,
all the names have t^een
changed but the story's the
same. The booklet which
accompanies the program is
broader, parody in g other such
guides which accompany other
such programs. The Foreword
and Prologue are disarmingly
honest concerning the beginn-
fngsof thisworic.
Orve or two facets of th is oartie
mark ii out in my mind. One is
the submission of my review
game on a micfodnve ^ the f^rst
so far — and with the occasior^l
shove in the r^ht direction it
performed |ust fme (elaborating
on these shoves, however,
might v^akan microdrive
sates) < Another is a letter From
Fergus McNeil of OeEta 4 to
LJoyd. the man who gets the
Rrams. which is about as friend
/ as mv bank manager's asking
me tf I should Ejke to service' my
overdraft. All is sweetness and
roses when Lloyd gets a ment^
ion but I am made out lo be the
uncaring oaf who delights in
stamping on any game that
doesn't come up to the mark and
pressing it firmly ^nto the sub*
stratum. The annoying thiryg is
it's all truel
Despite the above, and the
mention of a rival magazine in
its HELP reply (not many rwals
J eh now) this game has got that
little somelhing going for it. The
redes i^rved marader set is
attracttve. the pictures are oafi'
erally passafafe and more imcHor-
tant. quite fast f though the first
is remarkably similar to Ihot of
The Hobbii — no — identical
were it not for the chesi I and die
storyline is certain iy a very full
computer version of the original
Tolkien elissic By the way,
mentToning ttie Bored of the
Rings boofc is no less than in-
flammatory gi'v^in the afofe-
mentioned F^tt^r's expms
desire not to be associated with
the Han/ard Lampoon book —
whatever thai may be,
Working out how the Bored
nann«s (and I exclude the myst-
erious Judith who seems to c rop
up everywherel relate to Tolk-
ren^s provides muc^ humourotia
diversion Can you sort out
some of the following? — Fofdo*
Bimbo, Spam, Pimply, Murky,
Tom Bumbadil Place names get
the same treatment with a
Brandname Bridgep for e^sm^
pie, looking rerr^rkably like the
Forfh bridge. Other abbrevia-
tions include a Farmer Faggot's
Triff id Farm and a trendy boddy-
|>oppinp ba r row w jg ht
Starting the game you are
E)uickly introduced to the hum-
our which pervades the whole, a
gentle lampooning whFCh keeps
to I he chaiacfer of the Hobbit
world itself. Brmbo di:Sappears
with a large eMplosion lulling
several of his oogpii guests
whflie a little later Bimbo and
Gandalf discuss the small task of
CRASH JylY 1985 99
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ridding them&elvBS of the ring
, . and so vvell need lo gm
some den^ SennrTiirig to take il
afMi dump ii where old eyeball
can'l gel tL , Th©y boih looked
a! Fofdo' An isp«ct of play
reailv strikes home ©afly on —
the faci Ihal copious a mourns of
I^Kt can be produced sarnply bv
pressing any k^. ThiSn i am
sure^ is all pud of the sand up
and mak@s fh^ ^me all ihe
n-tore humorous for it. Nothirng
quitie beats .that fBintlv ridic-
ulous feeNng you get on discov^
ering how I ho g^me allows you
on wa rd no mn ttef how cleve r {q r
dismaO your attempts — I only
hope l@llirig you aboui this
wofi't detract from your own
feelings of embarrassment.
Bofeff ot fhe Rm^s is not es
boririg as ih^ title might suggest
and has obviously been con
^ "led by a programmer who
r ijayed Tolkien's onginal lis
humour is directed both at the
world of the hobbit (or boggit in
this chmi and more broadly at
the whoFe adventure^ fraterriity.
Being someone who hiS been
known to laugh at hirnsetf^ for
example, whsfi munchtng mint
peas and contemplating a pile of
screw in lighi bulbSp i welcome
the opportunity to laugh at the
whola fa nta^ /adventure world
in a way which rernains true lo
that world As if checking ihe
internal temperature of a thick
piz^a with a carefully inserted
index finger (why does this ool-
umn always degenerate into
food)? I make a habit of prod-
ding my way intti the uncharted
depths of an adventure. This one
has three parts, Probing part two
I found much to commend con-
firming what I had suspeetad —
this g^me has been dutifulty
constructed and ca^rafully
finished
COMMENTS
Difficy^y: mostly quite easy
Graphics : a few but not
p^irliLijIar^y good
Presentation: nice redefined
Chaivii.ltii set and colours
Input facility; basically
vefbi-'ncjun
Re^pon^se: instant. eKce^
wt^ere pictures are drawn
Genecal rating: qurie good
Atmosphere 8
Vocabulary: 7
Logic: 7
Addictive quality: 8
Overall vatue 7.S
TINDER-
BOX
Producer : Gretnlin
Graphics
Retail price: £4,95
Language: BASIC
Autnor: Colin C Chadburn
Tmd&fboM is a Softatd supparl-
ive product produced by Grern-
I in Ufaphics. All profits will be
donated lo the Ethiopian ReNef
Fund, The game comes com-
plete with a whole storybook on
lape and has options to select
the colours on screen and
whether or not to display the
piety res^
Tmderbo?t is a fairytale adv-
enture very much aimed at a
young audience and is the story
of a common foot-soldier and
his rise to becomwi the husband
of the bestriiful princess^
Roiiwlla. On one side of the tape
the whole tale is laid out before
you so making the game ttsetf
that much easier and te!ls of
how Tom, the wounded foot-
soldier, leaves hospital with
only a sword and five golden
guineas to hi$ name. Toying
with The idea of turning in his
sword al the pawnbrokers he
b£»gins lo wish he'd listefi^ to
his mum and become a Civil
Servant.
A fortune teller is mucii dis-
turbed by hte presence m
legend has it that the princess, \
the king's pride and ioy , will erid
up the "bride of a common foot-
soldier. Tom. naturally enough,
thinks this not ^chaliad turn of
events and decides to do his ut-
most to make the prophesy, and
his dearest wish, come tn^e.
Crucial: to his success is ihe
witch's tJnderbOK which magic-
ally conlrols the ferociouf
hounds. Winning first prrre in
the local arc^ry competition
impresses the Captain of the
Royal Guard and wins him a
magnifiteni lute with which he
serenades the pnrtcess, wmning
her undying admiration But
how to eKife the king to ^n
island, and how to escape ttie
or
3^
riik
The Quill
& The Illustrator
The Graphic
Adventure Writing System
For Tlie 4ftK 8|icc'li'uiii
The Ouill £14.95
c;ii.s()i T
30, Hawthorn Road
Barry. South Glam
0446 - 732765
The Illustrator £14.95
From Ci mi puter shops Nationwide
y** Or direct firtnti us by post or phone
Credit Card Order Lkw Stufled 24 Hoiirs DiUly
0222 -41361 Ext 430
CRASH Julv 1985 101
jail are proMefn^ which \m
bttween him and tbe glorious
wtdciing. All obstacles are over-
Doma in the end and T&m be-
earner the Prince Regent, htlp-
ing the princess m m£itt@rs of
s^taie and ending The king's dm-
poiic fule over the J and.
COMMENTS
Difff cutty: very easVi flim^ at
the younger adventyrer
GrapKici: very small graphics
or: some localHons
tfipiJt facililv: verb/noun
Resp<His«: reasonabla
Gmaril rating: one of the very
few advenuires calenng for ihe
you ngor player ■
Atmosphere 7
Vocab alary 6
Logic 8
Addictive quality 7
Overall value 7
AREN-
DARVON
CASTLE
Producer Addi^on-
Wesley Publishing
Company
Retaif price: £5,95 (Book)
£570 tCasstteJ
Language: machtne code
Authors: KalRenko.Sam
Edwards & Arand
Rensinlc
PJaytng adventure games can
biscome quite nx^ notorious ai
tiines when eaoh h#s th^ same
ingfediefits ^nd. m soma casa^.
the same problems. So it was
wiih a certain especial relish I
loaded up fhrs game whicfi
promises sornething a btlle
diHereni from the rest The point
IS thts game is so differ ef^t thai
for f 5 95 yoy don't load il up —
yOii type it in Mt is a book (or just
a book if yoy want lo be derog-
alory aboui ii|i. However, shotird
the thoughT of Typ»r>g machine
code listings into your Spectnjm
fill you wHh horror, you can
additionally buy a cassette w^th
the (Kog ramming already done
for you. Hence we have a Micro^
world Adventure for ihe ZX
Spectrum From the book pub-
lishers Addi$^n~We^ley with an
International Standard Book
Number
This game is a nobPe attempt
tD totally immer^ the player m
ih« world of Ar^fidafvori Castle
102 CRASH July 1985
syppostidly situated in the far
NW of Scotland You play the
foie of a joy ma list who has^ dis-
appeared while invest»gating
the strange past of the castle. At
your disposal are the numerous
newspaper cutiin^s and mag^
aiine af^tides detailing its mys-
terious past along with a guide
wfifech includ^es d^lai-ied pictures
of both the lns^d^? and outside of
Ihe loriress- Set against the des^
olaie. barren but wildly beauliful
highlands the castle ts at orioe
imposi^ng, impregnable Bnd
invinicible.
The rathef substantial and
crisply pro<Jucad book contains
a great deal to keep the player
occupied for some t^me A bfjef
introduction leads you on into
the (oumahst's art»de iiseK
WhrC^ leds of how the journahst,
speakmg aloud a timeless
riddle, finds himself Iranspqried
to the casilc within — a world of
ntagiic and wondrous happen ^
ings- A tall man dressed in a
faniaslic ctoak and tall hat
speaks to the purnahst with a
rich musical voice It »sZajar the
Great, most powerful o1 the
I ancient Order of Magicians. He
relates how by uttering the
riddle aloud the pumah^i ha$
committed hsmsetf to a quest
beyond his int^ inning. "Your
task js this/ he goa$ on, "in re
frieve the a fi- powerful cube a*
magKc and the subtle spelte
associated with it* Hie balance
in equihhnum between the
srmpte laws of Earth Science
and ihe higher laws of alchemy
can only b^ restored by tegam-
ing the cube of magic
A Guide to Arendarvmt Castte
follows detailing its history
nlong with the pertinent facts
conoemifig The Lifjraiv- The
Armotiry, The Bedroom, The
Greai HalL The Chapel and The
Sitting -Room. Beading these
s+H-tfons FS vital for your under-
standi no of this game as withkn
IS much thai will help you dis^in-
gui#i those areas most helplful
10 your quest A whole section i^
devoted to Jan^s Douglas, a
most celebrated Sorcerer and
instrumental alchemist, who
once inhabited the castle and
created the magic sign ar^J
aiphabei wherethe tetters them-
selves are a reservoir of Ttw
Force.
The second part of the book
corvee rns itself wiih playing the
adventure and begins with a
super summary of the difficui
hes crafting an adventure game
can present, the chief one being
communication. This project
has chosen a sensible solution
to the y&er-friendliness prob =
lem: it lists very precisely which
words can be used and how and
when ihey are most uselul A
definitive list of 8 spells (eg Rev-
eal Charm, DiscJose Ms followed
by the commands lasted under
subheadings such as Doo^'
Handfing Commands (Open.
Clo^e^ Lock, Unk»ck. Strike) and
Object- Handl irig Com m a nds
(Take, Drop. Give, Put. Strike.
U^el Each of these words is
given the full treatmani in order
to dispell any remaining ambig-
uity. How about th»s descfiption
for TAKE Syfrtax Obiwr^fitss,
£fteci: The oif/eci come$ imo
your possessfon, on coniftrtQft it
is riof too he^vy for yon tO Mrry,
tf if fS a Wt/>(t yov drmk ft; il the
ob/ect c^n be Wfjm you p^t ito^,
Exampfss: t^ke swor^, iak€ th€
coai. This detail i& shown for
each and every word which c^n
be used In this adventure &r^
although it may seem m first
long-winded proves in practice
to add cofisideraUy to it« pluy^
abikay.
If you know anything of my
views of ad venturing you might
guess that I most we f come this
kind of detail. It releases the
players from hours of tedious
word matching and gets them
straight into the mi>re enpy able
aspects of exp lor irig the fantasy
world before ihem It is some
ind ideation of ihe thought put
into th*s game when ihe authors
have tackled the absurdity of
beinp able to pick up objects of
varying weights with the same
ease Here trus problem is
tackled by insist irng on a consid^
arable forfeit of strervgth when-
ever a heavy object js picked up.
On buying this book a far more
pressing problem may surpass
all others. The task of tvpmg m
th€ prc^ram i^ ^ri oryerouis one
but is made more t>earable by
spHtlifkg the workload up mto 7
sections, one for each day of the
week, and an error-check which
IS bene r then that for BASIC
But of course, if you feel flush
enough to pay Addison Wesley
the additional £570 for the laps*
you can enter ttm vwoMd olAren
dsrvon C^i&tf^ immedrately and
in the normal^ way. Incidentally,
although the book is sold on it^
own. I he cassette i& not; this »%,
after all an attempt lo mvolve
the adventurer m the process as
well as the game B^jl the radical
approach of this game and its
unrivalled documentation may
lUSt make the program inputting
fabours worthwhile as the game
has a special flavour and atmos^
phere all of its own. Arend&rvOf)
Qisf/e IS onfy available direct
from Addison Wesley Publish
ers Limifed. Firjchampslead
Road. Wokingham. Berkshire
RGn mi. telephone: 0734
794000
COMMENTS
OitfkuHy moderate
Graphics; none
Input facility' verb/rtoun
Response; instant
Special featurei: program typed
in from tKMsk ^optional)
General ratiiis: quite good
Atmosphere
Vacabulary
Logic
Addictive quality
8
6
9
7
Overalt value
7.5
SUB
SUNK
Producer: Firebird
Retail price: £2.50
Language: Quill
Authors: Peter Torrance
& Colin Liddle
Sab Sunk 11 one of iwo cheap
offerings iromBritisJi Teleoim's
Firebird label reviei^ed this
month This is probably Ihe bel-
ter of the two as rt corvee rns tlBeff
wrth just the one immensely en-
pa gmg aclivtty "- (hat of escap-
ing from a tub sunk to the bot-
tom of Ihe sea by a surprise
enemy At^ck.
You ere Ed Urm^ « reporter
from the Seafarers Gazotte on
board the Sea Lion asaigned lo
write an in-depth insight ir^to lili
atx^ard a modem working $ub.
An aJerm t>ell rings and before
Ihe sub can submerge the crew
are overrun by the enemy who
fait to find our intrepid reporter
hiding under a bunk in the ward-
room. Your prime objective now
is to get to the teiej^ room to
send mo me&sage thai will br^ng
a rescue perty. The message is
sub-iunk.
Up ar>d running, the program
has an attractive appearance on
a b/w TV. but brighi white gteres
too sirongly on a colour set
Since thrs review i^gn the whole
favourable let'^i |ust sey \ played
the rennaindar on & bfw set after
the gfare of the coloured instruc-
tions. aitci in mofiochfornc", all
le^Dked well For an moHpfiin&LVG
Quilted oame the gfc]t3^trc£ are
presentable and sometimes
ralhef good [as m ihf? sickbary
and the cold sloret. Whit's
morep in ptace^ lik@ the oontml
room, wim ii$ ^nm displiiy {and
bleepe)^ and in the reactor com-
partment. I he control panels
show sofTie life like fhe flashing
t:onlroI desks which lined every
sp^re inch aboard The sub in
Vaysg© to the totiom of the Sea
rCaplatn. a huge octopus has
grabbed the shi|j' — "don't just
$itand there . melt 1 1 bs of oi I and
serve with a little garJfc'L
I musi say. for the asking pric*
I ThiCMjghl ihis game wdsn i al^ll
bad, ffifi bg^c required to SOlW
&ne or two of the problems wm
thin ir^ some places and sutpect
in otheJTs iKit ^nyon^ who has
play^ many ad^rentures can
soon get thai self-congratutat
pry glow of sausfaaion wrthin a
reasonably short s,pace of time
as problem after problem bilM
ihe dust The t^lanc^e between
getting somewfwre end sofving
pfobiems is ahmil right and on
your I ravels you w»ll find much
to keep you int^rTOtert und ent-
ertained As you might JU€S*
the DDDeep Fffree^
CCCCdmpartmeni Is rather
occoid. so much so you are
quickly returned back to t he Co id
Slof e before you freeze to a
bfock. Mos4 of ttie rest is freeiy
accessiWe right lirom the oM and
almost all vou care to examine^
puN or otherwise fiddle atout
with causes something to hap-
pen , or gives sn opportunity for
the program to sh^dw off some
new witticism In the torpedo
handling area PULL LEV£fl end
'whoosh! A huge column of air
leaves the tube' In the Control
ftoom EXAM SONAR to find
You're on the sea-bed matey?"
In ihe Navigation Area you can
feJtamine the map bul the torn
bits left reveal little that's intek-
ligible. I t^nl ^€^^^^mber ^ single
location where something new
wasn't discovered with only ihe
most cursory poking around
Sub Sunk hs a much lairer
attemp! to briniq adventuring to
the cosi'consoous con^mer
thari, aey. the offerings from
Scorpio re\ 'his
year. The y; -,.:,-„ ».: l^ no
means minimal — in many loc-
ations they add to the atmos-
phere and make play more en-
Eyable. Almost every i hi rkg can
i examined! end every Fever
pulled maintaining a high level
of involvement through out. Get-
ting out of thfcs submarine js a
challenge and you coM^d flo a lot
worse than devoting some of
your Summer hols pocket
money towards having a go
coMME/vrs
Dilficuftv- moderate
Graphics: on some locations,
felativiB-ly simple
P^eMfitation: poor, black lejrt
on while t^ackg round and
qraphicsscroll off with leutt
(nput facility: v^eiti/noun
Response instantaneous
Special features: some sound
^ffiicis
General rating: quite good
Atmosphere 7
Vacabularv 7
Logic €
Addictive qualttv 7
Overall Value 7.5
THE \
HELM f
Producer: Ft rebtrd ^,
Retail price: £2.50
Language: Quill
Author: Simon Jay
The H&fm, is Itiil only Quilled
adventure, is another Firebird
game on offer at a budget prtce.
The game's chief charoctefietic
IS a curiousTy verb<^e approach
to the business of communiC'
ating with the player. These
witty distractions dominate and
dictate the character of the gamie
and it is to the extent that you
can stomach such incessant
loquacity which will decide your
opinions on this game. It is a lit-
tfe unfortunate the game com^
bine$ such a windy style with a
rede Fined character set which i^$
so difficult to read along with
curious colour combinations
{tike the dreaded red on blackji as
this slows the proceedings to a
snail's f>a».
Whatever the cnttcrsm that
can be levelled at the long-
winded ness of the dialogue ft
mu^t be said this game nas a
distinctive flavour end it woyld
be wrong Lo assume everyone
will find it too much to take. As in
all comedy, some lir>es are realty
funny yirfiile others leave you
non-^plussed To g^e yqu some
idea of what you can eiKpect here
is a fair fepresentafion of some
of the lines you writ fr^eei.
'Up>on further opflc^laf con-
templation ol the immediaie
surrounding envtronmenl I fir>d
thefoNowirig',
What would you have me do
next your Brrlliancen^?'-
'Tfiy wish is my command
your most eminent eminence,
the task ha$ be«n completely
completed Sire^
Give me your next wondrous
command oh all intelligent one'
On cutting a rope loose ynu
ar^ greeted with. ' It drops to tin-
floof with the d*siincsiwe sOuntl
that only a rope hilimg the
ground can make Hit me with
another fternf. When attempt-
ing something [polish. Uke picl^-
ing yp an oojocl you alraady
have you meet^ 'Far be it for me.
a mere servant to criticise such
an omnipofent one as yoti, but
IVegot that! ' or. 'Although your
last command was intenectualjy
superior, I was unable to cornfity
With It"
You see what I mean — tt
either drives you potty or you
eecreily find it rsthpr *i musing.
Its not jusi the reptie^ which
get this treatment, how about
this locatmn description ^ I am
itandirig on a vast mountain
plateau with barely anythtr^ in
sight worth mentioning except
an old cigar tMilt (probably from
the same nof-so-imar co^isooias
native as Found elsewhere), arfd
one tree I probably not the same
one as mentioned in the Covers >
ant Chf onidesJ\
A lesser, hut no less unusual
feature of this game^ is the
aoundv where typmg a letter
creates a noise not unhke that
emanating wtien a pai^man
aobbles a pep-pill while ENTER
finishes it off with one reminds-
CGTW of a pacnian catching and
munching a fleeing ghost; All
pan of Ihe humour.
There is a bii of Ihe cheap
qame syndron^ about this one
which was not so apparent in
Sub Sunk which keeps itself to
the very precise tash of escaping
from a sunk sub f/if? Hefm has a
small sleepy village adiacent to
i bijfreri desert and uW the envir-
ons occupy iusl Ihe or^e local ion.
The ovefall inipriiss»on is of an
old fashnoned game, the sort
that was once play kI in order to
gain experienoe of adventuring
with the sure knowtedge that
better was soon to follow.
coMME/vrs
Difficul ty qu iie diff icu It
Graphirrs ndni?
Input facility: verb/noun
Response m^lanl
General rating: amustng
Atmosphere 6
Vocabulary 5
Logic 6
Add i ct i ve qua I Jty 5
Overall value 6
VOCAHLUJUIY n
g ii O »* i 3i » ^rn^b»iiipy0»ti-
hii#v li>b« kltd «AiCi# MiTM^ or
1^1
ADVENTURE
TRAIL REVIEW
RATINGS
Gfiii^Ad WfMft^ mt/f^f!^ tin rncofv^
m^ imcew qanpiUT NOT AH
AMlRliOE OF T>€ OTHCn lUTlNaS
CRASH July 1985 103
:^^^-s
ASHKERON!
Prod ucer : M i rror^oft
Retail pnce:£5.95
Language: machine code
Author: Texgate
Computers
I suppose I €Quld sink ttiis review
oti lis launch by saving sann}-
thmg silly tike if you're briyhi
youll get the Mifror^oft bui,
dor*'t worry, I won't say a^y-
rhingof the^orl.
AshkefQf} js notable foi its
huge si/ep its ufi^qua walk-
thmugti graph k^ system wtiioh
dives the fMl of wander ing
Ihroygti a castle^. amJ ai50. rt$
conspicuous ImJc of the kind of
puzzles which so engaged iha
early adventurers weaned on
Artie ^ame&> However, ihis
game »s no watkovef and itie
more you plav it the more invol-
ved yoij become as it builds am-
sistently upon the charming lit-
tie world It creates.
Ashkerofi is the nanie of the
gfincipaltcy where a Princess
eraphina lies we«ping on ace-
OtJrit of her forlhcoming marr-
Safe being heJd yp by im abs^
ence of rive treasures bequi^ath
ed fof the well being of the
peOfklee of Mhk|*ron. The curw
of the Wizard ^n the nearby cattle
will be complete unless her
dowry can tte wrested from his
gfa^p. Wtiat is needed is a pow-
erful and resoyrDtful man, say a
blacksmith, lo go and sort out
this eyil magidDn and, if ht
should r^^fu^n in qni? pr^e, who
knowsK ha mighT gm \o marry
the princess snrj start up his own
fiHindry Isorry fo^ks, someor^e
left that joyrnalese machine on
— it's on now ai^ the rest will
make compFei^ sente, I prom-
isel, Al the crack of d^wn on the
day oi the Spring Equinox, the
people aecompany Stephen
tthet's you, the blacksmith I to
ilie gates of the wizard's casti*.
Suddenly, the ^ky darkens, light-
ning flashes ami e dap of ihun
der bursts oveitiead. The skies
o^ar and the panic siuti^ides but
Stepfmi fS- now on his own.
Tne^ &m two options ffofn
which to choow orr loading: a
mandard vefsion or a random-
ised vers^or^. It is some measure
of |ust how interesting this game
is to say that tha standard game
proved quite Surprising enough
without having to resort to ran-
dom elements. That said> it's
good to be offered a second opt-
jort where the obfects are soit^
i^red randomly and the fiemie
different every time. An added
interest is the competition run
by Mi>rrofSoft to find an advent ^
urer of the n%onth who will t>e
the play at to produce «he high
est score for each month until
Feb 88. €2% in cash each month
awaits the player with sufficient
Wit and diligence to achieve the
month's best.
The first framSp funnily
1CW CRASH July 1985
enough, brings jusi the sort of
pu2zle so rare in the remainder
of the adventure whereby either
it gels solved or you're left wan-
dering eKctuded from where it's
all happening. Here you might
guess your quest lies across the
drawbridge and through the
portcullis rather than in ihe for-
ests that surround Ihe castle.
Otm little tip at this cruder potnr
for those who end up buying
screw in Hght butbs of bags of
minted peas, or who can be rel-
ied upon to put thaif feet in it —
tfor>'t fool around switching the
sound off With QUtET half way
through this delicate problem
Otherwise you'll be back on the
wrong side of the drawbridtja
before you can say S0GATfi2.
Best to leave any fine adjust-
ment unti) safety ensconced
within the castfe
Movtng east you notice the
perfectly adequate and some-
times rather good graph lies
which only occasionally stretch
the imaginaiion too far toward
the abstract. A distasief ul smell
naturally pervades the stables
and the stable boy 'ains that the
horse hetB i.s very frisky. Explor^
ing the castle further you will
come to realise cofdn damp
towers marit the NE. SE. SW«
and NW corners of the buKding
and their heights afford access
to the upper and lower levels.
Explorpng the second level
above might be better left rill
later as it is guarded by sentinels
who pose little threat while you
are on the move but are only eff -
ectively, and Tina lly, dealt wjth
once certain knowledge has
been ga ihe red elsewhere (you
know, not being atria lo give
away clues csi^es this column
to make about as much sense as
i nst r ucl iOns for self - assa mbEy
furniture J. Much more of an
immediate threat are the small
whiap^ng wioged cfeatures
whicn graep md lift you high
into «f»e air. These creatures teft
me stumped time and time
again — even when they drop
you they grasp again as you
sfruggli in vam to make good
your escape. Were this not
enough, also wandering about
many levels is the green shmy
dwarf who slices at you with his
mag n if teem sword whiJe he circ-
les you warily.
A very strong point in favour
of this adventure is its malting
full use of Ihe eicamine com^
mand. IXAM POT in the kitchen
Sves 'Bubbling inside ks a horr
le nreen liquid in which the
odd Done can be seen' while
EXAM BOOK in the library
brings forth 1l is tH>und in
Vou K€ar tH€ sound of i^ooves
iron ihQd ii^heeis* Into viein
coii€S a HQ r %m -^drm^n cart* Xt
s t d p s o u i s I d € the c a s i L a ,
and
b.
dr^wbrid^c
€n l€ r s *
Vou go south
^Du go cast.
^ou can at so see
w D a d s Ki a n s a x « ,
^ u go € a & t .
a long handi«d
leather and Is obvi«.Mj^iy vnty
old'. Hncidentallv, picking up the
book makes n difficuh lo read,
and once you get into a position
to read it. much haste is recom-
mended). Throughout, eKamin-
ing things will either lake you
further into the intrFcacms of the
plot or add to your involvement,
or enjoyment, as for example,
when examining the pictures
that line the walls of the art
gallery.
It won't be too long into the
game before you meet 'Sudd-
enly it grows cold . . You see a
patch of green fog, which, writh-
ing and swirling, transforms inlo
ihewirard , . This passage wiH
mark the beginning of a period
of time when everythmo turns
topsy-turvY due to some ni^ty
piece of cunning magic from the
wi^afd^ Morth becomes south,
up Is down, OPEN is CLOSED
and other inversions occur
which, if not fully understood.
Will leave you baffled at your
lack of progress. Fortunately,
the wizard's spelt fatJes after a
time and is abruptly shortened
by changing leveis
Ashk^ronf is a real-tin^e
adventure whic^ not only in
volves the 'time passes' every 2D
seconds land the occasional
graphic of the wizard asking
Tfave you gone to sleep?' to
which the knevitable reply is
YES) but also tt>e real threat of
being waylaid by a patroHing
sentinel or marauding green
dwarf overjwwering ar^ events
uaily ki4hng you should you
deiay. K is nigh ly professional,
sophisticated software Wit^>
many fine features (you cai
even use a jovstkkl Its appeai
will be very broad due lo its
open struclure, which can be
quickly and easily eKplu red even
by the most novice of adventur
era, and its endearing storyline
set within a most impressive
and believable casile ensure
that in its walls lies a challenge
everyone will firnd interestirig
anriJ rewarding.
COMMEmS
DiffiMify: easy to get into, not
so easy to complete
Graphics: on every location,
quite 0ood though a little
diunky
Presemalion: not bad, the vuhile
t>ackgroutxl is an unfortunate
choice
Input facility: basically verb/
noun though also allows SF^eech
input
Response: v^ryfast
Special features^ game plays in
real time
Cenaral ratbtg; good
Atmosphere 7
VoQabulary 8
Logic 8
Addictive quality 8
Overall value 8
T
1^
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CRASH Jul V 1985 105
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106 CRASH July 1985
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CRASH July 1985 107
Shortlv 9<ter the TrrsT hoin*
cofTkputeF ihat coutd bad from
and save to cassette tape camd
inCQ bis^ng. you can b€ sure that
some bfiqht spBfk had the idea
cif producing a magazine or tiuh
Aewstatter in softwafe.
The Amaficara started ih« ball
roHinf . with a cotiple of in»g-
82m#$ appearing on tap« in th€
fat© seventies — and there's
nev^r been a Mortage of prog^
fanrr listings in conventional
computer mags For keen ids to
lype in for i hansel ves. Sorne
iiSCings publishafs offer their
Headers the chance to buy a tape
of ready typ«<f m listings tC»o aS a
sypplement to the printed
fublication It wasn't unlii 1983.
ow#vef, with the launch of
Spectrum Compuftng anct tS^4S
that Spectrum owners were
gi^en the chance to leap on the
magnetic bandwaggon.
Ar^w Pms led tne field, put-
ting out the first issue of lSf>ec-
trum Compming e&rly ifi |he
year, arid Ifiev wefe foilovw] bv
an independent conipanv. iApg-
nefk Magazines Lid who began
publii^hiny ^6/4$. and then ^d
the magajtin^ to Argus PfmM
after ten issues. Thus the two
main casietfe piubtications are
now produced indirectly by a
makn^tream papef-ind-inkpybl-
ishef. but ttiiee independent
tape maga^mes for ttie Spec-
ttum are alive and kicking,
MSWM iMfcmSofiWamM&g'
ari/i^J is producers m Moseiey,
Birniingham, by Infififte SoH-
waf«: Magn^k Msg Nvei
tncommunicado in Romford;
Esse>c and a new title (or yaiins-
sterSr Kfddisofi is being prod-
yced in Cornwall,
As a m^iym for publishing
news, vis^ and gossip, cass-
ette lape isn't I ha I wondprfu^ —
you'd need an awful lot of tapes
to store one issue of CRASH, and
it's not thai easy TO f li p t h Fdugh a
cassette mag in the t>aih or on
the bus . . , nOp we're not too
worried here in CRASH Towers.
Qut they ^ have a defeniie
adva ntage in t h ^t prog ra ms con ~
ta»ned m a tape mag are load^
MAGNETIC MEDIA BARONS
Argu^ Press Software
Liberty House
222 Regent Street
LOfidonWlR7DB
SfMctnirn ComiHiltng -- O.di
16/« — £3 25
Infinite Software
73 Alceetet fioad
Moseley
Birfninghfjm 13
MSWM— £ZA
Maaneiic Mag
39 Priest's Avenue
Romford
Essex RM1 4fiJ
{Magnetic Mag — E2.S1)
Kiddisofi
5 Nanpusker Road
Hayle
Cornweit
TH27 5JR
lUddiiolt-aj9
straight into theoomputer — no
longer do you have to spend '
hCHjrs typing in e tedious mag-
azirie listing on fy to find ihat the
gumby who wroie the game
man^gted to diddle £20 out of the
magazine publishers for a rotten
game not woffh the wear and
tear your keyboard suffered du r-
ing: the inputting. No, it's all
cheren up front and loaded
straight into your machine —
and the commerciany produced
titles are now filling a gap in the
software market, publishing
quite ^ood games that might
otherwise never have seen the
inside of more than a couple of
Spectrum RAM chip>s
i;-yi £5ipi^lifj| tail
thii ittfiti uil 1
« iPPiftRtly leitt
1 : u^diriti^i iMl IIP I
nnii Iff lit ab«1^t. lAlt
- 'i photfl
- fir i
iktim Mo. rfi« Sarrra of
MUKTmjm computjnq, mmkn
# point fmmfiimf ro ffu^gMMinm
'Progremmers of mtenned-
iaie al>ility can t selMheir work
very easily', ctjmmented Hoy
Gibson, big cheese on Spectrum
Compel fmg, 'and we provide an
alti^rnpiive outlet to maeazine
listings It's the same ictea as
prmtJng the ii^tingsr but at leesi
all our readers get to see a pro-
gram we publish m the mag-
azine. fMot everyone will oo to
the bo I her of typing m a listing
published by a convenijonal
magaiine'^
In many ways, tape mag-
azines tend to be more 'clubby'
in nature thjin their printed
counterparts. MSWM is publish^
ed t^ the Micri;»sottw8re Club in
Moseley and is noeant to be e
means of communicatfon be-
tween club members — 'one
thing that we all have in com-
Tape magazines aren't small beer nowadays.
Argus Pmss Software publishes two titles
for the Spectrym, and also covers the Atari,
Commodore, Amstrad and MSX. If you
added up all the tapes duplicated by APS for
all the issues of its magnetic magazines in a
year, the figure you'd end up would be very
mon tS ihiit vwcf iiii tjwfi a Spe^'
trump an ideal means of oom-
munication' as they say them
selves In Issue 6. As with a) I
magazines, the tape fines
encourage readers' letters, and
there's quite a lively exchange of
tips and hints to be found in all of
them. MSWM has a deliberate
polJcy of leaving all their prog-
rams in li stable Torm. and of Fill-
ing them with REMarks. Readers
are encouraged to break into the
software, ei^amine it and learn
more about their machines as a
resuh
The cor^tent of the MSWM
magazines that we goi to see
was generally tnterestirig and
strongly /eflected the dub
nature of the publication Their
readers merrily swop hint* and
tips and send out appeals for
help via the ma^aiines 'pagee';
whrle the editors I ^am provide
features on programming arnt
getting the most out of your
pact rum. There's a positive
'we're all in ihis together' club
feel lo MWSMr and if makes you
wanTtoiorn in .
And that's perhaps the major
appeal of tape 'z^nes — they are
an ideal medium for communic-
ating slightly more technical
information, as a tutorial feature
can actually iJomonsirate the
theory as pert of the prenent-
ation rather tiian re^yirig on the
reader to type m acres of code^
debug it and then refer back to
the printed page. The straight
entenainntem side, games pro-
grams, reviews and ediloriel
pieces themselves are not mtMl-
ly nybbish, either. . . .
^
Ifm pfwt tit, IVtotf Mfe tar miir«?
ShmMinm mmy morm? fmm ihm
Roger Swiff, who started
f6^4S and now produces it for
Argus Press Software pays
between £20 and C TOO for a pro
gram published in his mag-
azine: We provide an outlet for
games which are riot me^a-
gimeSr and are becoming a
market for people who can write
games which provide our read-
ers With an example of what
they DouEd do on their comp-
uters. Nowadays I'm rejecting
material that Td have been
deliqhted to receive a year ago
— the standard of submitted
work has improved enorm-
ously.'
And Roy Gitsson ol Spi^ifym
C^>mpuUng takes a similar view:
The amount of material gener-
ated for the Spectrum is mass-
ive, and we fril a nice little gafi
beiweeri the Top Ten commerc-
lei aspirants arid the type-it in-
y oufsblf -f rom - a magazine-lisi'
I no brigade.'
Atagn&ifc Msg remains firmly
anonymous — their 'phone
number is ex -directory, and two
SPCCnUMl COMPt/flW^^i tefifl mnmn^ mnimmfm^ c^rtoan Mfrip.
I'VI
mmrm r%om
thir
ft
i I. on
108 CRASH July 1986
MAGAZINES
big indeed. Big enough to make them one of
the largest software hoyses around.
Three other fish swim in the Spectrum tape
magazine sea as well, so we take a look at no
less than five potential competitors on these
pages . . . fearless ain't we?
tep^raf^ lettem tailed to elkit
uny kind of r^ponse ftom ihem.
You might thfrrefom. be a littte
raluctani to send off the O 50
th*v ask fo^ an issue 1 Enough of
The lady behtnd Kfdctisoft is,
howler, quite happy to an^M^r
th« phone and Explained that
her magazine is p nnw venture,
aimed bc v^ungiiers betweflo
the a^es of four and eighi. Anne
Menneer hB% a degree in Psych-
ology and is a trained toadier
too. Hef lape nr\agajine is inton^
dfld as a comic: 'si igNly educ-
atjonah and fun\ and shmjid
come out monthly ^Ftar the firs^
fmi jiftuet.
'Edo-taininefir is one of those
horribly ccKnpound American
words used to descirrbe entqr
taming educational programs
And in a way that's what Kf€t<ff
sofr sets out to provide m a mag-
afine format. OveraM. Issue 1 is a
joLly package of ^ames, which
could do with a bit of polishiftg
— while the graj^ics in some of
the games could do with a iittia
more thought (or programming
skill), the pame content was
good. The simpNf^ed adventure,
which asks the player lo choose
between options ralher than
dream up and input comrrand!S.
was particujarjy atlractive, with
pretty graphics arid an appeal-
mg storyline, if a litite ret>eiitive
I you could visit and re- visit
comers of Che program endless-
ly^ doing the stime thing Bf\^fy
The fii^t is&ue o( Ihe Kfddisofr
magazine is indeed a w^srthy
SI lot All tha programs are m
ASIC, and have l>een writiein
in hoiise'^ Once the magazina
get tkm titm f?gAf« «nd
Mumpty vMft 'i Wif
thmhmitoott
— mehmmrfidUf^chmlfmnii^rnmi HmOiSQFT.
builds up ^ readership and starts
receiving programs and letters
trofti outside contributors \l
could easily ma^e quile a comf-
ortable niche for itself in the
educai tonal marlcet. Meantime,
we're passing our copy over to
flosetia Mcleod^ . .
I6f48\s a monthly magazine,
and as its title suggests, is aimed
at both users of the 16 and 4dK
machmes^ Roger Swtft sel it up
back in 1983 and published ten
issiies of the magazine liefore
deciding to acceprt Argus's offer
lo buy out the title — largely
because the business side of the
operation t^ecame loo much
hassle.
J$f46 is put together every
month by Rogef and two coll-
eagues— an adventure eolumn-
isl and graphics whizz by the
narrie of Yaz, and Barry/ who
writes tha seriat adventure
Lii</oids and the odd piece of
machine co(te. And of course,
there are the readers' contrib^
utions.
frt!$Tmltnmni at thmir mmrlBi
The Luctoids adventure is a
particularly neat idea on the paft
Of Wi48 — a 4aK xexl with
graphics advemuTe which start-
ed in issue 14. You can pFay each
month's game on its own, but
con p4ay through the serial as
you are given a code on success-
ful completion of each month's
instalment which you can use to
kick off with on the ne^^t
'chapter'. And of course the
magazine is in a strong position
when rt comes lo offering hefp
on previous chapters of Ihe con-
I inu J ng adventure. . . .
O^spite the titJe, W/4fi, like
the majority of Spectrum tape
magazines no longer worries
loo nriuch about having lo cater
for owners of the 16K machine
— there's not that many of you
left, it seems I
The June issue contained the
usual editorial end contents
piigei. reviews, a cros&wprd and
competition, and a contir^uation
of the mag acme's machine code
course. A neat explosion rouiine
was also supplied, explained
and demonstraied, and offered
ai a uiijiiy lor inclusmn m read^
ers pfograms
On the games front, a comp^
etently programmed machine
code platform game iived on
side One. which lost oui on
pley ability a bit by bwma too
peintdicety , and a golf sim uTat ion
lurked on side Two which €0vM
have provided hours of anjoy-
m^nt /or some people, . , .
The May /June issue of Spec-
truffi Compuimg whtch is aboul
to go month liy, was slightly
better equipped with games,
feaiuring a neat and compelling
machine code arcade game
cat red Prggy , a rather pretty but
fiendishly difficult ma/e game
and a ve^ tidy implementation
of Cribbagt. VWiy anyone
should bother to program Solii^
aire as a computer ga/ne is a
little beyond this 'umble rev-
iewer, but someone did, and
now you can own a copy by get-
tinj hold of this issue S.C I
Reviews, a chirpy editori<al
and the regular animated
cartoon also appear on tha tape
with a column by Wt^^rxf Prj^ng
who h the residefi! machine
code eK pert /tutor^
Sp&ctfum Compuimg has
recently changed editor, and will
now be produced from a bung^
alow in Marseyside by ^oy
Gibson, having lived up !«ili now
in lolo Davidson's farmhouse.
Roy plans to charrge Ihe mag-
azine's emphasis from a contrib-
u tor-driven publication to one
that picks a subject each issue,
and involves contributors mofe
dire^ly in the advar»ce planning
of the magazine Roy makes a
point of always cfrhcisinfl sub-
missions constnjctivelyp sorne-
times writing a little machine
{^de routine to improve the
original program, or referring
the program m-er to approprfate
referervcel30ok&.
Both f6!48 and Spxfrum
Computfng feel that the core of
their readership lies with the
mom serious Spectrum user
and leas with the commmed
arcade pfayer. Consequently in
coming months theemphws ii
Eikefy to move towards supply ^
ing more material on the madv
ine code and utilities hom, white
continuing to publish games
prog rams as 'ffwbies' ,
0! cCHifBi. Ihire's no real
reason why tape masafines
shouldn't include tapao inter <
views with people in the soft-
ware induslry, or fndeed com-
bine recorded sound wiih soft-
ware in the same devious way as
Softlee Sy^afns have with their
educational software {see this
month s CRASH COURSE). The
possibihhes are endless, and
they certainly serve a comple-
mentary function to the tradit-
ionally produced, hard copy
computer magazine.
A subscription lo one of ihe
tape nrtagazines would provide a
regular hx of software and tath-
nicat information, and shouHd go
dt>wn well with any serious
computer user. But tha game
player has a lot to gain from tape
magafinas too — for the pr ice,
they're hardly a rip-offp each
containing at least a coupie of
perfea^y respocfab^e budget
games, to^erthnr wtth featurea
pfesenteij in a dubby manrwr.
VVorlh checking out,
CRASH July 1985 109
I
by ffosetta Mcleod
TIM' rapid I y eKpanding m^rk^t in edycationnl sdtlware is ref^^ct«d
by tfl9 »h«6f varidy df programi n&w b«ing i issued While oo! aU of
tli#fn strike me a.^ as being of great educational value, it is nevo^^
ttlvless hearleriing to note that some publishers are now prepared
to«AM>erimene with nevv ide^s in this mrtA
One o( the most exciting canccprs is «he See Hear f anpe of pfo-
grams from Soltliee Systefm. whicfi provide audio material for the
usior to Nsien lo tti rough headphones while watch ir>g ihe screen.
Each See Hear pack^e come complete willi a conneclton lead lor a
standard '4 mdty stereo headphone socket, and other.lypes of lead,
suitable for personal stereos for instance, are also available from
Softies.
Using a stereo casseae deck, the tape rs loaded into the compyter
in Ihe usual mafinar, and the user will hear The »nst ructions for the
Dfogmn rhrough the headphones whiif! ih*i t^pe f^ aclually loading.
Ttiis ta achieved by recording ihe spoken word onto one of the two
tracks on Ihe stereo tape, and piiiimg ihq prograpn pnio the oitief
track. All hough Ihe canc&pt of ^udio- visual pr^^ntatipn in ^uc-
at ton 4S not new, Softiet" are probably Ihe first company W bring the
whole idea within ttie reach bHhe ordinary horrveHCimiputer-user.
From a teactier'$ viewpomi. the Se^ He^r progfan^s seem to me to
have an entremeiy useful rote to piay in our quickly changing educ-
alJonal system. Over recent years, teachers of both primary and
secondary scihooi chiWfon have become incressingSy aware of the
importance of leaching Nstenirkg and talking skills as well as those of
ceading and wfitinq, Indeed, future eMams may tetually test levelsof
competence m ali four of these skills
At present, there >s a dearth of materials speciihcaify designed (or
teaching and assessing Pistening skills, and it wouid be valuable if
IheSee Wear concept could t>ee attended loeow'e^r a variety oi sulij^
areas . Tony Leeof Softlee Systems is very interested in developing
software With a string educational content, and hopes to add (ang-
Liaqes other than French to his range o( programs
Another novel program ^s Wotidwfse Nt/d&^r Weapons Irorfi the
ftfchardHn Institute for (kniilict and Pea^ Rasaaftlt at Lancaster
university This program is not available m the shof>s, and c^n of^ly
be otitained from Lancaster Umversiiy Although it i$ therefore un^
likely that the program will achieve any real commercial success, it is
nevertheless good to know that, at last, minof ity interests are being
catered for in the field of educational software
It seems, however, rhat it ^S only the smaM publishers who are
beginnin^jj Xa wake up to the rieeds of the large rmmber of people
involved in education. They ^m realising ihsl educaimna! software
should not be directed $olely at children involved m the traditional
areas of learning, bm at people o( all ages who have a wide range of
differefit educational iniere^ti. Let's hope the larger pubiishers will
soon follow suit
A DAY AT THE SEASIDE
Producer: Softlee
Systems
Mem Qjy req u i red : 4SK ^
Retail price: £7.75
(tncludinq connection
lead and tiashcards)
Age range: probably from
4tQ around 8
A Day at the SeastdB is a spell ir^
story tape for young children
which should be used with a
stereo system as mentioned
previously The detailed mst rue
tions included in the pack clearly
eKptam how to set up Ihe eqiuip-
menl , u s hng t he cor^n eel lO n lead
supplied. Side One of the tape
contains the instructions for the
story itself in software, and
while the program is loading the
user is treated to aneicplanatory
commentary. This isparticuliirly
useful for a parent running
through the program before
using it with the child.
Side Two contains the story
itself, 4 D^Y Hi ths SsMStde,
which ts read ver^ ctearty by a
female voice. At specific points
ifi the r^arrative. the child is
asked to spall some words The
words can be introduced to the
child before the program is
used, using the Hashtards pro-
vided in the package Twenty
wordSn such as 'beach', ^sea'.
'cfab' and 'frier' are clearly prim-
ed on one side of the card, wfiile
a writing tutor for the word i$ Ofi
the other A pareni or teadtef
oin decided how to ose these
(iash»rcte to best advarttage —
before, during or after the story.
One verv useful feature of the
Brogran^ is that, ateer the child
as typed in the fifth word, there
is an assessment of progress. If
rea$o<nable progress ha£ been
made^ a further assessment and
score is g<iven aftef every other
subsequeni picture displayed
no CRASH July 1985
on screen. If the child has nr^ade
a lot o1 errors, however, the
computer may advJse the u&er to
stop and do some prepa ration
before starting again. In this
case, the computer will empty
US memorv and refuse lo aan-
tinue. Another excellent feature
IS that the parent can alter the
nomnat lower case speHing to
upper case (capitat lettersj it
required.
This^ program has been very
well though! out and is profess^
ionally presented. The sound is
ekceljieni and the speaker's
voice is clear and pleasant to lis^
ten to. The music and sound
effects contribute to the child's
enjoyment o1 the whole. The
five-year old who tested the pro
grain for me loved the story and
was particularly amused by the
humorcHJs touches m it — for
msiance the family forgetting to
put the baby in their car when
they set off lor their day at the
seaside.
My assistant was lotatly
motivated to spell the words
correctfy so that the computer
would show him the picture of
the word, and allow him to con
tinue with hearing the story. Mis
final comment when we had
completed the program was
'When can we do soma more
stories (ike that^' Faced with
such an enthusiastic reaction, I
highly fecommend A Dsy 4it f/*e
Seitsti^e for use lK>lh in the home
ijnd in schools
COMMflVTS
Control keys: words to be typed
in by the child No need to use
ENTER
Keytioard play; responsive
Use of colour! simpte. but bright
and attr^ictive
Graphics: clear and effective
General rating : an eMcelFent
prwram which young children
witllove. The adu^t (teacher or
, parent) can decide on the best
way to use the lla^shcards to
meet the needs of the child.
•i
•-i^N^^
-^r*
WORLDWISE: NUCLEAR WEAPONS
Producer:
The Richardson Institute
for Confiict and Peace
Research, University of
Uncaster. LAI 4VF
Memory required: 48K
Retail price: £6 (or £8.50
including the book. Guide
to Nuclear WeapK)ns}
available only from the
Universrtv
Author; Paul Smoker
Age range; older
teenagers/adults
This is probabSv one of The most
unusual programs I have seen.
Wofidwi^t' is riestribed m 'a
microcQinpyt^r atlas that can be
ui*d 10 study a variety of world
problems' — in this case it i? the
nuclear threat that i$ focust&ed
on, though it is hoped that future
programs wiM dea^ vvith suoh
topics as Kilerdcy, food, health
and wealth.
The program comes complete
with a twenty seven -pai|e users
manual whtch gives very
deiaifed mstructjofis on u si 119
both the Worldwfse Attas and
ihe Nuclear Weapons sectioris
of the program. The Atlas hoJds
fnore than 130 muntries, and
maps may be reduced or entstrg^
ed irr the Atla$ part of the
ir^m.
.-hile the User Manual sugg-
pSts that m dividual or team
fames may be played to rest
nowled^e of the names and rel-
ative pDSil 10 ns of cou n tries , w i ih
the best wiH in ihe wo r I'd, I csn-
nol see ihat iha games suggest-
ed would provide much fun or
enjoyment, though they would
certaEoiy be ot educe: tonal
value.
When it comes to using the
Nucie^f Weapons section, the
Slayer is asked 10 selett from (he
ightening (ist of weapons
owned by the USA, USSR.
Fra nee a nd Ch ina It i s th en poss-
ible TO choose an area of the
world and call up on the screen
the vBfious weapons deployed
there.
In this respect, the program
Mioeeeds in making one aware
of the reality of the nucteer
threat, and of the proliferalton of
I weapons distributed around the
world. Again, this section in ihe
Users Manuel is fo Mowed by
suggestions for simulation
fames involving two negotiat-
inp teams repre^niing the Wes*
IL^A. UK. France) and the Um
(USSR. Chine). These games a re
proposed for use m the dass-
room but woultJ, I think, or^ly be
successful with the bnghtest of
senior pupifcs, and only with a
vast amount of preparation ao4
guidance by the teacher.
Paul Smoker, the author of
W0fidwi$e has used the limu^
ations very successfuily with
eUXDC TO TM» .
« n P D li
RtCtwii^U^pi^^
^»TXTUX
1965
gr&ups of Students at the Rich-
ardsofi Inslituie who are follow
ing Peace Sfuriif?s coufws. but.
whil^ a pprf?c Ealing ihat Ih^ prog-
ram m^ighl app*?^! to under gr^-
uates. T doubi il it will enjoy ;
murh ^success in schot:)ls.
Certainly the idefi of dass
room simu1atiNC^n$ as a way of
focussing discxjssion on the
problems of the nuclear oge is e»
very worthwhile one, but I feel
that ihe ralher dull presenlation
of lh« program would not en
dear a to school pupils More
ctea rly rtef ined sn uations,
which look the players step-by-
step through the decision mak-
ing processes involved would
have made The game more
accessible Nor^ as it stands, is
the program likely lo have imm^
**r|ifffe appeal to teachers, be-
I .!usn of the vast amount of dir-
\HA\im iind help they would hav«
logtve to 1 heir pupils,
I'm sure though, that the
program will be very successful '
with Ihe undergraduaie audi-
ence thai il was devise*! lor —
perhaps too with other groups,
iik^ Ihe Gri?pnham Common
prote^terSr aUhoij-gh I don' I think
there is much call for hon^e-
c^mputerts m their tents 1
Control Keys; the vafiety of keys
to be used m ihe differeni sec-
tions of ihe program is
explained very clearly in the
Users Mflnual
Keyboard play: very last
Uw of colour good
Grafilifcs: niamly maps, but
clear ri^prfrseniatiorfs
General rating: minority appeal
A I mf^d .1 1 im academ re au d ience
CRASH July 1985 in
^^/
3- j'N>"*—
"^s^
HISTORY MYSTERY
Producer: Argus Press
Software (Clever Clogs
Series)
Memory required: 48K
Retail price: £7.95
Age range: 5 to 11 and
over
The arm of Ihe five gafnes in I his
fiackago is to teach children
sbour the Bible m an enienam
ing way bv giving them the task
of finding vsnous Siblica) treas^
ures, such as Moses^ basket, the
Ten Cornmanrfmenis and
HiS rod's Grown A clue ia B^ie
reference) rs piv^n for each
treasure. The first game, JE^sy
fim^sm, involves only seven of
XhB ij«sures ar>d t& intended lo
familiar) w the pEayer with tha
conirols. After ihi$, ihe garnes
become progrossivciy mofo dif -
ficuit, iKjilnfing up to the final
cha H enge . Piuttd&fthurtifef,
where the phiyer has to race the
e vi l D r P I u n d erwerst t o t h e t f ea s
kjres a^tuHing a vanciv of dar^g
ers on the viTijy.
The player ts referred to the
Today's Engksh Varsiori ol the
Bible, although ^ shoft $um-
mary of the EfSble stories which
occur m the ^nrrw b supplied
with the cassette
A teacher of Religious Educ-
ation, vwtio looked at the pro-
gram for me, had some reserv
ations about us use He fell thai
Ihe m^ps were a useful watv of
reinforcing the geography of the
areas involved, though iho mci
USion of a vworM m^p wpuld
have been helpful for the chUd eq
see the position of the hiblir.*^!
tands m relation to h^& won
country He afso thought thai the
^am<j fancouraged cTiildfon to
inti^rfpn^l the Bible literally,
instead of increasing the aware
r^^& that It contains not only his^
tory but also myth, legend and
iHfable. Not doe$ it consider the
fact that the real function of
Bihle study is lo he^p people
learn more about themselves
and the mod*jrn w^irfd ihey live
in. The Good Mew^ Bible wouki
probably have been ^ more suit
able source of reference that the
Today s engNshyersion
FRENCH LISTENING
COMPREHENSION 1
COMMENTS
Cofltrpl keys: move by using the
arrow keys: i to see list of
treasures. G for clues, to firwi
out if you have landed on a
treasure
Keyboard play: responsive
Us* of colour: good
Grapihies: mainly maps, but
rtu lie good
Gefief«l rating: with a fan
arnount of acJull direction, this
program could b^i^ useful.
though I doubt if pt is the krnd of
game ^ child would choose for
himorherBell.
Producer: Softlee
Systems
Memory required: 48K
Retail price: £C.50
(mctuding co«ir)ectior>
lead)
Age range: Secondary
scnool pupils to adult
with a basic knowledge
of French
This listening comprehension is
one of the See Me&r proflrafiw
already described The piogram
cont^in^ three diffemnE
sections, each with ten ques-
liOt\$ and of increasing levels of
difftcuEty. The user will hear the
instructions for use in French
yvhile the pfogram is loadingp
although they are primed on the
package in English too.
112 CRASH July 1985
In the first sect son, shon snip
pets of conversations can be
heard; and Ihe tasjc is to answer
questions on who IS speaking r
whei e the s|>eakef is- and what
he is doing. Each time, the
screen shows a choice of four
possible answers, and the user
must position the red band over
til*- answer of his or her choice.
Ontrmighi, for instance, hearihe
contents of & flopping Usl arMl
have lo decide il the speaker is in
a cafe, a giooer's shop, a chem
ists's or a bakery At ihe bottom
of the screen, a green sinp dim-
inishes in length to show the
amount of time remaining.
Section Two contains short
cfesGfiptions of varioui situa-
nons. followed by part of a con-
versa I ion Thjs lime, the user
must setecl the correct reply
from ihe opTigns on ihe Screen.
One conversation ts between a
policeman ^nd the witness to an
accident, who is asked "Was the
lorry I ravelling too fast?' The
final and most difficult section
features a cotwersation amj a
story, e«h of which is heard
twice. This tin^, the questions
are also di sp Fayed a second i ime
with the initial responses high-
lighted, so that the user can alter
the answer given if he or she
desires,
If the user soones 16 or more
ou! of a possible 30, the correct
answers can then be displayed.
With accompany ing explan
atlons. for tfie questions incor
rectly answered or the user may
choose to see fu^ the number of
each question he or she ans^
wered incorrectly, together wrth
theanswef chosien
This program definitely
scores over the other language
programs on the market be-
cause of the lislenm^ element.
AM the audio matefial is read
clearly and at a sensible pace by
two native French speakers, and
the sound quality ts very good
indeed
COMMENTS
Control keys: any key to move
red band downwards to chose
an answer, number keys to
move it up
Keyboard play: ven,^ lesporistve
Use of colour: Nmited
Graphics: none
General ralir^ ^ Highty
recommended
Trouble In Store for Herbert
Spectrum 48K £9.95
Commodore 64 £9,95
AmstradCPC 464 £9,95
44 The Broadway. BrackneK, Berks. 0344 427317
^uasl
SUPER
PIPELINE
2
ProdyMr: Taskset
Memory required: 48K
Retail price: £7.96
Language: machine code
Super /^peiift^ b40«rri« some-
thin§ of a cull game or* the M
and njave soltwar^ hqu^e Task
sat a bifi foN owing The Spec-
Ifum version of Swper Pff}0fm&2
is th^ firs! ever gama T^skset
have dort^ on i he Spectrum, and
ia a conversion from th© 64 v©fs-
ion of the same name.
In 54ip^^ Pipefm0 2 you are in
chaise of a gang of bu^y work-
men vvho tepoir various long,
convoluted pipes that get dam-
aged bv the n^iles ihat cofnn
from all angJes. Some of ihem
are harmless to Ihe ptpes bu^ not
mucb good to yourself or your
team, where »$ others, like ihe
two types of drilf. make holes m
the pipes. This is a Bad Thing
because water is flowing ifown
from a cisTern at the top iefl,
Ihfougti the pipe, to issue at the
end into a barret. The ol>|ect is lo
fill the baffelta) before the sup-
ply in !he cistern runs oui. It
takes a whi le for the wate r lo ru n
alt the way through the pipe^ so
nothing is beirw witsted if hole«
are m^a before the water
reaches theirk, but after that
precious time arKi water ia
awast^ng.
to repair a hole you must
guide one your workman to the
hole, at which point he will start
hamrr>efing away and repairing
it. h takes a few seconds to re-
pair, end in the meantime you
must protect him fmm the pred-
ators. This is done by using your
blaster whichp however, may
onty be fired left and right which
puts you in a vulnerable position
while you are climbing up Or
down a pipe. The workmen run
on to the screen and dash
around the pipe cxjmpbK until
they are either snatched by a
na^ or come up against y ou^ in
whi>ch case they huddle m your
b«ck until led off to a repair fdb.
When a barrel ts filled^ a Tune
plays and vahoys inier screen
immaiion sequences take place.
Each subsequent pipe is bnger
and more complicated ihan the
last, ialer ones require more
than one barrel to be filled, and
of course there are more artd
naa:tier nasties. Lobsters can
only be shot up from behind arid
the laclts are completely mvuln^
eivWe.
CRITICISM
A This may sound like a betray-
al, but we ought to admit that
ItHjre are some games where the
114 CRASH July 1985
graph tc$ work so well on the 64
and less well on ihe Spectrum —
the reverse is elso true of course.
Super Pipe/ffw 2 is such a gartie.
I do piav garner on the Commo-
dore, arbd I his looks so much
better on that machine. Anyway,
having said that. I think Ta^ksei
have done a good conversion of
this madly addiictive piece of
freniv- 1 aiwaysenioyed the way
your workmen have a mirnlle^
mind of their own, and true to
British styie — there's never or^
around when you need one I
Niggles are that the horizontal
pipes are hard to get onto, con-
(rol Is shghtty Iricky {and il is a
te&t of your ioystick loot, and if
there are a couple of workmen
shelterir^ behind you, their
characters overlap, making 4t
hard to we the damned pipe!
StilL it is an addictivf^ game, a
playable one although a bit
lough because of thi? things IVe
just mentioned^ one well worth
getting/
• 'This was one of my f&vourir&s
onrh^C8M. The Sp^trum vers-
ion has not don& too hBd/y
m^her, it has vefy jootf cartoon
fik& gmphics v¥hich are vw//
drawn and animated. The sound
is very good for the Spacrrum
but il fesv&s a tinta m Ae ^asffad
Playing the game « jw mantc. or
nwm so. ihan the CBM$4 )/ers-
fon and f am vary ^^d^^ted ro it
as it is so ptayahfa. il has iiftta
sequences at the end tike 'Pac-
man' whfch am ytf/y ioity. My
i^nty mggfa is that whar^ you
want to cmss ovwf to another
part of of the p^pefinm you hava
to mova youf foreman axacrfy to
the nghi position or aise hi^
won 't move a f a/f so it you amn^i
very good at piaying or you have
n*o workman folfowmg you (so
you can'l see the pipe} you tend
to fos0 hv0$ M ft iakas t$m& to
gatitrfght
• 'Supar Pipeline ? is a fa$t^
addict tve and very difficult garr^
to play Graphics are along the
u^ual pipeline styte but plenty of
nice animation and cotour the
meanies are extremely vicious
and at first I thought the game
was too difftculi to ptay — I still
fiol I soon gal very frustrated
with because as soon as I had
plugged one hole, another
appeared. The water pouring
out is reaN$tic and nicely descr-
ibed. I found the up and down a
linle hard to get the hang of— a
bit finicky. A nice game but a
little too difficult <or my liking.
Frantic pi uggifigf
COMMENTS
Control keys: O/P left/right. EfD
up/down. Space to fire
Joyvticfc; Kempstonp Sinclair,
Cursor
Keyboard play; very positive
response, but finicky control
Usft of colour: ferMrally fine.
each pipe in a dffferent colour ^
but some graphics clashes
Graphics: nicelv sijsed
characters with good animation
Sound: good tunes between
screens, otherwi^ spot eff«ts
Skill Imli: progressive
difficulty
Uvm: selectable between 1 arxl
B
Screens^ 16
General rating : a conver saon
which suffers in comparison,
but a tough and addictive game
nonetheless.
Use of compoter 77%
Graphics 80%
Plavabilitv 81%
Getting started 80%
Addictive qualities 86%
Value for mo ne y 79%
Overall 7d%
SPECTRUM 48K
Oyr )mwm N«r«"Htii Must ¥lmff of
'OmMt Em" farm hu bMfi c^nd bi «>
Mp ■ "Cliacioliitt IfQ" rr«n^teclyrflr asit
ool hti tuiofnAitd ficiofv. which hm foiw
hiywift l-l»rry. uijn^ajlth^ikllkihikc^iukrii^
woflcH^ l^n |ti« H«ri HouM mmt pti ii«
wti«4lt d tnduttry movlrio.
Not only don Hvry h«v9 Id co««a ti*
IngnKMnti to fiiix Vi* •nt. bui h« wfll
tfito Htvt iCi ooitct tia pvit for tittoyt
Ihtl go miNM iw teo*^
^ If til |h«H p ff o W u n t ««rt n«
«riOL/gh ihtr« art ■ nufnbv ot
Oth*r ItSPTit (h«| Hirry wrttl rt«*d I&
•J^ ufet to b* i^il« to
oam^Mit Itit mk Thirh^a likt
Itddtri, bin oi q\f^v% h^yt vnd
of iurpr^M^and n H ■ inio Arctd* / Aefvtntjf ■
mtMm.
h NO^JSBCUm^
AVAILABLE FROM GOOD COW PUTEH STORES
IR Rfi £6'90 ALSO AVA1LABI£ Pi RECT FROM A&F
Great games. Great ideas.
ASF Sottwsra, Unti B, Canal Side Industriat E»1at«,
WoodUnt StrMi E«$l. nochda(«. Lanes 0L16 SL8.
T«l«phofw: 0706 341111
H'E-R-B«E*R-T'*S
^
HERBERT'S
RUN
Productr; Miero^«n
Memory required : 48K
Retail price: £9.95
Language: machinfl cod^
Author :Th« Micro-G^n
toam
Now vou should all femernber
Herbert. He's \h& Vm\e chap froHn
VM Week family whost in#pTiC'
ude became \world refiownad 'm
E^fyone's a W&ffy In ihia garn*
Herbert has become separated
from his Mum and Dad during a
visit to the local department
SCO m It is u p to you , i he pla yar to
guide him back to hi« partnta
Mtio ate waiting for him tn IfiNi
'LOST AND roUNO^ dapart-
metil
The game begins with Heffaert
in the toy departmeni at 1 pm:
the store ckjste it 5,30 and you
have four and a haif hours to tm-
unlta Herbert with his parentalip
sinoa the game is p fayed in real
tima^ In both style and present^
a! ion He f bens Dufnmf Bun it
similar to iirefyone's » W^ffy,
which Ja not ^rprit ing aa it'a the
third gama in iha Wally trilogyt
Dummy Run is a gfaphic:ai adv-
eniure garner that calls for a high
degree of arcade skill as welt as a
degre« of taleraE thinking. The
opening screen rs typical of the
116 CRASH July 13B5
game: Her ban finds hintaelf
standi rtg On a box in the toy defh
anment; yoy notice at the top of
the screen a serie* of shalvw
loacied with a wide variety of
toys How can Herbert reach up
there? Well of course I he bo?t
ha> standing on is a Jack -m-i he-
box, and when the key has been
fetched the spnng action wiH
propel hjm yp onto the $half^
As v*irith the other Wally
games, many of the screen* wim
the form of well known arcade
games. One screen can onty be
solved by dismantling a wati,
'Breakout" style — if you man-
age I his the resultant pat on the
head is welt dewn/ed.
Tha gaitw would be too easy if
you could pick up and carry
every object that you came
aCTOMp Only being able to carry
two Ob|acts at a time forces you
to do a little forward thinki rig At
the top of the screen you are
reminded of whai objects are in
your possession — the one that
you have had for the longest is
eutomaticalty eicchangeil For
another 'collectable' piece aa
you walk past it. As you exptore
the store looking for the ways
ami me^ans to soEve the game
you are under constant pressure
from a wide variety of mobile
'thingies\ You have three lives
and when you come into contact
with some of the nasties your
energy, shown by a larfe tear
that fills up, will tie recfuced until
you escape the meanies. or lose
that life. A few mobiles kjll imm-
ediaitely on contact so you wi
have to learn to identiry them
Kjickly. You are able to reverse
e drain on your energy t)-^ eat-
ing the sweets found scattered
around the store-
For his efforts, Herbert is re-
warded with his favourite |el^
babies I and the closer he he is to
finding his parents the more he
will gel. All told the game ex-
tends for over twenty five
screens, but doni e^tpect Herb-
ert to get fat on jeity babies too
soon!
D-U-M-M-Y R-U-N
CRITICISM
m M have miMOd fwlings nboat
this game, on tfie surface H i« w
9X€eTi«nt program but I fi^el itw
Micro-Gen may be repealing rha
formula onci Id oft^n. Jfy<>u
ifon'i mind thai, then He-rtmt's
Dummy f^un mery b€i wvorth hav-
ing. The graphics are eiKcellent
avon beita^ than ibo^a in Every-
o/?#'s & W^fty, the sound it reas
onable and the colour is used
w«il. The game m as infurialing
as It's predecessor and should
please the arcade /adventure
addrcts. Thoae horrible colour
artribyte problems are still with
US but they mally can't be heip-
mls after a while you tend to ifi-
noi^e them. I think the uhing
price of C9.35 is a littfe steep —1
fflfll the pame would bo much
bmer valua at £6.95. Overall it's
A vflfyflf»d program if you don't
mind more of tfie ume I hof^
Micro-Gen's next game is
graphically as gK>od but with s
^ybstentially different game
format/
• *Mert>en's Dunimy Run coff
I I.QST mj
f
to Mf€fO'G9fi*M hmh stMfH($rtf,
Tfwy &m b&fh o^TourHit /ame
smdeisiied. The gsm^ is n^n
^nd v^ry &ddktfy^ an^ contains
m&ny mint g^mms wtthin it's
mini gfmes Mm nothing ih$n
arftf W tne o^ifffart peri! of tfm
g^me. Hsfberr is i^siin^d io b^
Bnoth^r Micro-Cen stAr. Al Ififs
™ie / don 'i think the Wsi/y tniogy
is evwr going to stofi, with ^Jfi
tJho^e ch^r^ctf^f^ to chooM
from, rm gfsd tfmy'v^ onfy got
Oil* ChSfSCt&r in this one — /af '*
f3€& it wh^n VOW Vfl got f*v0 fiv0
chomct^fs &f/ste9fif^g th^ ob^
you n&ed nejft infanating im*t
th0 \A^ordr
• 'Staying on {he tame lin«i ai
before — Htfrb^fi 5 Itfe while he
gro^Mi up in a wihJIy itrin^e
place — H^rbmfs Oammy flyn
IS iet in a targe dapartment
store. Graphically it seemato ba
far better, perhaps it's the use of
mofe colour, or even more den
tailed characterm. One room that
I liked parlicularty was the one
^ith e huge bed and loti of Z's
float i>ng around. Plenty Of at C&de
sec^uences are in<:3uded in the
game, which follows on from
t M goiWFSl tdei of the previous
Walry gemn and requires some
thought to enable you to prog-
ress with it. I only wrsh [hit
Mikro-Gen had included wowm
other characters that wander
about, as in some of their other
game$, but sequels are baied on
on the fact thai the production is
better in some way than the tact
game. Overall I think that Ihii
oarhe i& anotfier winrwr Idf
M^kro-Gen/
C0AfMe/V75
Control km: O£.T.U,0/W,H,
Y,I,P Icift/f ight, Z M to jump
Joyttidk ; S inc lai r ancl K6 rr pston
KavtKwrd play: good
Um of colour: very good
Graphici: excellent
Sound: good< nic« optning tuna
Skill lm«te:1
Uvn: 3
5<:x««4«i:over26
G«fMnl rating: more of the
$4m« €Moel^nt stuff.
Use of computor 90%
Graphics 90%
Playibilitv 99%
Getting started 83%
Addictive qualities 90%
Value for money 82%
Overall 90%
CflASH July 1985 117
4
**
:i:
BANG i^ALLOP
/
BifP
Draw a Heavyweight Fighter
and win a trophy!
tHUMP
118 CRASH July 1985
^
ELITE'S latest oWertng for the
Spectrum 15 FRANK
BRUNO S BOXIhta in whieh
you have to fight ^our way
to the tap in th« heavy-
weight ring.
We'v« obtained a sneak
preview af the portraits of
the eight boxers who punch
their way ihrough the game.
The nice Mr WkIcom at Elite is
offering some knockout
prices to CRASH readers
who come up with a
drawifig of a ninth boxer
Take a gander at the eight
lovelies pidiired here and let
your imagination run riot —
the oulf ighc winner of th^
€omp will pick up a specially
commissioned trophy, a
VTX5000 modem (reviewed
in Tech Niche this issue | and
a copy of the game Two
lucky rutin ers-up wilt al$o
pick up a VTX5000 modem -
ideal for getlif^ onio
Micronet, together with a
copy of the Frank Bruno
game, and a further twenty
two lucky entrants will
receive their very own copy
of Elite's aggressive arcade
action masterpiece.
Entries please to reach the
FRANK BRUNO
COMPETITION. CRASH,
PO BOX 10. LUDLOW.
SHROPSHIRESVaiDBno
later than 25th July
let's have a nice clean
drawing, and may the best
artist win in the, the Etite
Prize Fight
CRASH July 1985 119
ablush
MOUNT
CHALLENGE
Ptoducer: Aasvoguelte
Productions
Memory required: 48K
Retail price: £6.95
Language" machine code
Aythor: Bill Percy
I would lifco to think ihat this
otme was inspired by ttio
Shfopflhire hills that ^lirroLind
lit authors honne tKit the rfaadly
creatures and unplea^ani plant
lifi found in this game are ihanlt-
fully not CO be found on the long
Mynd. al least not in sucn
numbers.
Mount Cfta/tenje is &r\ iirr-
yfual g#me- The player guides
Professor 8urk to the top oF tt>e
mouniain For the sake of scient-
ific research he nnu^t battle his
way to ttie top wt^iFe being under
conatant threat from the nasties
that live on thie mount. Even the
iltHa biidies tucked up in their
rmts are lethal- Burk must be
guided froiri one ledge to
another (in realiiv, platforms of
vafyi'^g length and colour). The
length of a ledge can be
described in terms of blocks or
steps s^nce this is how Burk
moves, either one or two steps
across or by one or three jumps
up Of down. So to piav the game
you consider the ledge that Burk
IS on and try to map out a route
in advance- If Burk is on a green
ledge then he cannot move at bM
until the energy 1$ turned qn,
and then only one ste{> a i a time .
if a (edge is red then movement
is by one step a! a time witti the
energy off or by two steps wrth rt
on. Ifymj are one step from the
edge of a red led£^ wiih the
energy on and you jump to the
side i:hen you are going to jump
one step too far into who kr^ows
what-
On some led^<es m on stars
await you, attacking as soon as
you move onto their level at
which poi-nt es«3paet tuW speed
is the only couiieand under that
fcifid of pf assure softing out
Wliether you shoul^d have the
energy on or off ^ ve?v difficult.
The game is played over 160
acraenSp the mountain being 20
acreens hiqh with the other
straens taking up its various
fiices- Some faces have no
ledges — so any an^m pt to jump
onto them wiU be met with mild
disappointment. Getting to the
mountains summit takes a
great deal of lime t>ecause the
author has laid so many traps.
More often than not you think
you've found a way up to the
next Eevel or^ly to discover your-
stlf trapped because the colour
of the ledge you land on pre-
vents you }ympir>g back.
While the game does not pro-
120 CRASH July 1985
vide a score as such this can
measured by resting how many
levels you have manaoed lo
scale. Three Jives are allowed
an<S in the very likely event of
your losing one you find your-
seH sback on the screen on which
you died but back at the place of
entry. On the B si^de of the tape
there is a pretty standard
dominoes game — generous
chap our Bill The same is onty
available mail^irder, and you
can contact BMI on 069 4E 345
CRITICISM
ft 'When I first played Moitnl
Chiftteoge I though 'Oh no not
another hatf hearted platform
game' but I was wrong. The
program is definiiety more of a
puzzle than a game but 1 am aure
that's as intended. The graphics
are OK for the type of program
though a kittle on the tjqring
side. Hound the game extremely
addictive and challenging. Mo^
of the time w^ spent experi-
menting wfth different rout^. \i
is a great game for the price and
with the dominoes game on the
B side it must nave some
appeal/
• 'Mount ChaDenge res^fy ts jn
i^d^lM^I game hec&us^ the
movem^nl is d^}ef}dent on the
coiour f&dm on which you Mm
sisfiding. The game demaods
f^0tty qufck decisions. Ar fh^
Bdge of most semens do& has ro
decide wheiher lo Jump one or
fwQ blocks but since you cannot
se^ it's reafty a gamo/e — most
of tha time t was wrong and
either ended up either strnnded
or shark beir Whife Mount Chatl-
enge has very simple graphics
they are smooth and every now
ana then you encounter mirror
graphical niceties that implore
you to explore further. The
game design is superb because
the Idea behind it is so deviously
simple, 3t IS frustrating^ challen-
ging and addictive Play ability
was marred until the controls
had been mastered. In defer-
ence lo Mr M inter I will describe
the game as 'brill n fab' so
there '
# 'When I was first shown this
game by Mr Peruy I (in Minter-
esal 'got negative vibes man'
and my first impression was a
bad one. When i settii^d down to
play it I was impressed by the
puzzle that the game presented
and I would dearly love to get to
the top of that wretched mount-
ain. I am only sorry that nKsre
effort was not rnade to produce
much more attractive graphics,
in themselves Ihey would have
made rxj difference !o the play-
ing of the game but I am not
happy that the e:Histlng graphics
do the game itself justice. One
oddity I found in the inlay was
the claim thai the game had
been made 'deliberately harder
when using a Kempiton , , , ' as
the player could only chartge
energy when the stick was cent-
red . , , .Hmphi sounds rather \ikn
a bug being fumed into feature.
Perhaps Mr Percy will combine
his obvious talents wtth those of
a good designer lor hi.s next
game/
COMMENTS
Comiol kava: Q/A up/down^ \fP
tett/righi, w for energy on/off
Joyatick: Kempsion but the
game IK hordfif to ploy
Keyboard play: responsive
Use of colour: generally very
Simple
Graphics: smooth end simple.
Burk IS rather unflainty
Sound: nice tune
SItill levels: 2 if you consider the
f Kempston
Lh^as: 3
Screens: 160
Genafal rating: a high ^
unuauai. addictive, difficuh
game demanding a sense of
rhythm and fast refSe^ces, a bit let
down by the standard lookmg
graphics
Use of computer 70%
Graphics 57%
Playability 65%
Getting started 65%
Add id I ve qua titles 88%
Value for mcMiev 80%
Overall 76%
I
I
H
I
nodwibii!
I
WINNERS WINNERS WINNERS
OK Chaps md dh^pm^m, H»aft
w» go wrt h «noth«r Rmu^$
Roufidup. brought to yoti fay
IfQUr loy^t Conipetilion Editor.
wliOM Onty aim in lifD is tci g^t
hold of luvv^r ly prizes and l«1
you win thenr^.
No c^onlri buttons havd b««n
fort hcom ing for t h« j y m p^r fund
and despitg the so-c^fl^ start
ol summer this uftible miniofi
h«s b«#n slaving ai^ay, worfcing
his flngeti to the bon^e with
hardly uny time l«fl Co shiver
I' vfl done my very very best
thta month, la toap you up to
darto with who has won what,
bvt with Lloyd's inoassant
daftiATKii to mak« him toa, sorv-
ice his tvpewriter end kick
Candy, combined with J«r«my
'El Corpulento' Spencer's insist-
ence that I WBsli Kis Morgan
i'wtry Monday. VvB not got as far
forward as I might haw.
Winniirs of Bubble Bus's High
Start challenge, the Vulcan
Pc?!iigncrr Joystick c^Dmp«nd
Inceniive'^ Confuzion SwmI
Shirt puzzle w\it have to baar
with me 'tilt neytt ish. The Micro^
rn&aa Slime Challenge Wvnn^s
wilfknovy who they ^ re by now
— Micromijg^ ire writing tO
ttiem direct to make sure that
Ihfl secret play-off remains a
■Mietp so it's schtymm from me
onttvatone Men n while, here's
the rest of the resjtts to dale. . . .
WINNER OF WALLY
FAN CLUB COMP
David Ball. Alice Street, NE33
6PH
HONOURABLE
MENTION
DanFet VVatkir^s> Ueadovv Rfse,
DYn US
T Lennon, Kingstandmg Road,
Birmingham
Sjsot Prize Winners
Afan McNamara.York Avenue,
OL84BV
Birly Sloan. Maybole Rd. KA19
7PQ
Robe rt Cor rad i , Brookmans Ave,
AL9 7QG
David Tyter, Henley Crescent,
B91 2JN
Stephen Graham, Green Lane,
Gymbria
I McAuliffe, West Common
Grove- AL&21L
RUNNBRS UP
Hed Conwnkm. Thy rlf«l«nt Drtv«, StLJ
^m, Qf^hmi &0lkff. UiiidCMr V»nv. Nfa4
Qfmn. ^r^wdtfTHHOriM. P07 SH^. H^
Lovti^ond. Po^ Un«. WAI3 BQJ Apbin
Pirnitk. Jh^Hunmhm.iXn OOP. Slffvvn
Wp4ivw^. W#li^o<?*W»dL N?rtiislk, JU«n
Am^W^ r«ykif . yVixidi*^ Prr^f . Sit 7 JV.
Dim WsMt. Si Mir iumi GArdtfti. LM
mi, OvMt^ilw wlQitw. EdgwwKt
Df^^ LU2 SEftp SliVVPi ^flvi^ Uiw^
StWt iU M, Sivfiliifi d^t^ri.
HiJlf¥i9rri«rin Hom^, 14 3SA, Cif I SjmpidVl.
BerrvriHdB R<i«). ettiauS, Jdflfi Hulv
E imt^i^lt G Fovt. SC» OAJC. JomlNm
C I im i(h. L^rwujln ft v»n ue. G1 3 3^. P*ul
MArcroP!. KanniHtv ^Md., SB CM^O, C M
Ll#**|l¥*t S*tiilh. W*ri«ICfl Pl»», OSCt
?iD.C4^.rtRwlii«. Schqaho^if*. RY WlOH,
0«rrv MctiHfTvadi, 5jild»jr IScm*f. G&l
AES. Stu#fl WtitlM. ^M ian*. L 10 OAG,
Siuan Chtf^iMcfc, ji^vnaOetv. W?^ tOv.
Clwr* Artiili*. Arthur Vl««r C ruiP l fit EKS2
1 W, 0tv4 B«ikr^ . Wrt* Gmn flMd Bl^
9PZ. LiH Dane . Sii»nnyHto P«rc. Gw T ww g fl.
ififffi McCrum, Tirtlvyhtfiin Rc^. NnfltH
■rfi lf*1*n[J. jQ^n Gtf^li.TI^OtnlMllI
WINNERS OF THE
AUTOMATA
COMPETmON. . .
Deus Ex M whina. Greatest Hits
Vot One ar\d Two
J Gregofv. The Uwl6v. 863 UB
Paul Smrth. Rosebank. EX36
6Aft Jason Goij^ddrd. Dordor^
Close. BM 1 AH Philip Miggrton.
Irofiaidc; Road, S14 James
Parsons, Heron Way. RHT3 6DP
Fhra winners of D€US
Jonathf^n B take. Janus, OXS
2SH John Atkin^n, Browfieid.
CA11 OQAJ Harvey. Sawley
Road, DE7 3EF Andrew Todd,
Croft Ctose.Y043JU Paul
Wadswofth. Lmvis Court, 0A1 1
7EA
Twi winners of TENPACKS
K Bos toe k, H<ghfieid Dnve, CH7
7AL Mrs J V Pitched. M^dsh1ps,
BN24 SAL M Craig. C/O
Mawdsiey. EH67NL Graham
Fulcher. Lowenva, IP2S 7 AX Ian
Clark. Argyll Street. PEZIN 8PH
Mark DrackfordXr^^sing Rodd,
CM7 6PN S G Miicb«?l1. Mun-
nings Close, RG21 3EH J Tomk
insoa Sundial Un#, B43 6PA
Chra^ Robinson, Tuart StrMt,
DH3 aEN Steve Livings. Hasl€^
mefeRo0dXR4 79F "^
Wfr$r»6fs «f <Xi TO JAtL Msk^tm
Colhnge, Lostock Avenue, 5K12
1DR E Hart, Polmu^r Road.
SR3 1 OF Mrs A Culting, Cam-
bridge Rqad. MEa OJH A
Measures, Foxborough Road.
0X14 3AE Derek Cooper, Gran-
ville Road. LAl 2PA Michael
Bowdilch. Goldcroft; SA21 4DA
Damon Querry, Mouni Road,
SR4 TQDCiive Piteher. Paddodc
Mead, CM 1 8 7RR Aiistair May»
tnstilution Road. IV30 IQT John
Taylor, MelbourrveCouages,
NR22SV
WINNERS OF THE
IMAGINE
BASEBALL
COMPETITION
Ikik^rmon. BmYfiMii Bo«l M€l03AD
Anihf^v Alt«n, Bi^iMM 0«iC*nt, LU^a^
iofLithan AnfSat . Mrm Kn ^i U^y& n. Wtt
OPS ^i r Blrfi4iu TV. P:¥i**vG*ov*. POS iftlJ
C n Bsniv. Aihcroh HoKl. U7 SBL H^
i^nfi«. W«lmlf>v nchs-cr, B?g aPtj hArK m%
AJpift* hmt. CV3 SNA KFwn Bot^. ftiidf^ng-
rinH Chom. VS'^ i T S Hi ii*v Bt&^n. vttwm
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ftcad, [>orbv Ji^niShin Hufii«F. CimtJ^ftiPH^
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WEiOlon. Cntit RoiiJ ST7 3PH
ERIK THE VIKING
COMP WINNERS
ThrM winner* of Game and
Booh:
Peier Miller^ Cedar Close.
Hampshire Stephen Otiver, St
Davids Drive. ENIO 7LS Graham
Pugh, Ascot Clos«„ Cardiff
And the S^ventflvn rynn«n up,
who win a copy of the ^mmtio are:
K^ith Alabaster, Sroadoak
Avenue, ME 156DH C fl Beale.
Ashcroft Road L37 68L R
Hofman, ArubaBtraii 29 i71S
RT. Netherlands Dagan Jones.
Rokesly Avenue, N88NR Scott
Jones. Green How Park, LS29
7LZ Tony Marshall. Douglas
Square, T09 OQU A Matters^
Church HilL Souih Yorkstivre
Andrew Moukwick. Rivet adanie^
TS9 5D0 Simon Pro ud man.
West Town Lane. BS4 5DX Marfc
HoBke, Whopshoti Farm House.
GU214SQTorav Russell.
BlancSwalk. L6 9HD Mi<;haQl
Slaier: Wood To^. BLO 9EN S J
Smith, The Mill House. CTt40LH
Tony Smith, Salisbury Roiid,
EX8 ISN Jonathan Stweaa Cfd*
Des Uses, Chanriei Islands J
Thompson, Edgerton Drive.
LS24 9QL Peter Watne, The
Haven, Shropshire
af fh9 prrf * in tht Almtt B Ma^ dtmwtrtg tramps trtion 'Hug
ma. ji^u««t« m^t a#ir« from cf#f oln ioonwy
CRASH July 1985 121
WINNERS WINNERS WINNERS
STARIONCOMP
RESULTS
CongraUilationsCrashlings —
ihe Univ«rse has been ssYed as
■ result of your sHorts in the
StawnCompetrtksn' Here's the
output fronn the Select and Sort
Algorithm ap^pNed to your Post-
sl com muntcaC ions. . .
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AncirtA BAfton, fUniKin Cmc«nL S6 tfIG
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0A16 2€R hfigtl Chalhl, Swindan ^gd,
Hu !i 4HW M«fih«w Coohii. Ol<( School
HduH. S^TI*tti« Alin €«W«n Ftrnm
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Wmttfi-:- riafciB^ DH^OLFT
VOTING FOR
THE
ADVENTURE
CHART
Th^ CftASH Adventure Chart
has picked up considerably
S^nce we tirst introduced it. witn
more and more votes coming
in ©very day] To make life
easier for sorting, we are now
providing a separate wrile-m
form, so p4ease use it for the
Adventure Charl, ai>d not the
one included at th© botlofn of
the Hotline details If you are
voting on both charts, you rnay
send boih foims log ether in the
same envelope of course.
How to register your votes
There seems to have been
sorr^ conhision in the minds of
voters for the Adventure Chart .
so to ctarify the situations.
h«ro S hoyv we do it You may
vote for as many litles as you
wish (not jLkst five as in the Hot-
lirva Chart) and you may award
any of them points out o* fen
So, (Of insiance, you might
vote for seven Wes giving
eadi of them ten points if you
think I hey are worth it. or only
three and give them one each.
These votes are then added up
for each title and the total is
divided by the number of peo-
ple who voted for the program
resulting in an aggregate
figure, Ffom these figures, the
top thirty adventure games are
taken in descending order
Phoned-tn votes are
accepted over the Hotline
(0584 30 IS) in the same way
(please slate that you are vot-
ing for the Adventum Chart at
the tieginning), and may also
be written in letter form without
tie use of the coupon it you
prefer.
Adventure Chart PHzs
Draw
Arid don t forget that, like the
Hotline Chart, you can win
pfizesf Each month ^e draw a
winner from Ihe voters, who
recces £40 worth of software
aixia CRASH T shirt, with four
runners-up each gettirig a
T-shin and a mini'Subschption
to CRASH for three months.
I ADVENTURE CHART
I COUPON
I
I
Name
' ■%'*♦■* I i
I Addrw
k li ■> <■ H fl ■»■ P,P * V„t. t ■* * I *
I poati^xte
I
Send your coupon lo CRASH ADVf NTUftE TRAIL, PO BOX 10,
I LUDIjOWi SHROPSHIRE SYB iOB
RementMr - poirm out of ten tor as msny Mei as you wWi.
are:
r
I
)
1 Name , ,. TITL£
I
CRASH HOTLINE WRITE IN COUPON Mytoptiveiavouritepfogfamsindescendmgorder
Please use block capitals and write clearly!
PRODUCER
Address
■III ■'■'« I ■■■ ■'»«*'«'■*'
I
I
1 ■
1 Postcode « * I ,, * < ^ *.»*.......... p p p * p . , £^
i i
I Send your coupon to: CRASH HOTLINE. PO BOX 10, =
I LUDLOW, SHROPSHIRE SYS 1DB 1
122 CRASH July 138S
I
DOING A
The chaps at Dosign DMign
(the fellows who brought
Sou. amongst other things,
^srk Star and associated
lunacyt are about to release
another ganne onto the
wortd
Calted On Tlie Ryn, the
game is plaved in a beautiful
maze, containing weird and
wonderful ptant life and
there's a whole gamut of
monsters lo run . . . you will
have ihe choice of a variety
of weapons with which to
defend yourself, and the obj-
ect i^ to collect & number of
potions in order to save life
and the universe from the
endless onstaaght of
greeblies.
It just so happens that
Graham and Stuart spent The
latter pari of an afternoon in
the office and were sttll
around when the pybs open-
I — never on^ to mtas an
oppoftynity, we wheeled
them down to a local hostel-
ry, plied them with pints of
the killer *OfdFtatu/ence' bit-
ter and told them they were
going to have to stump up a
pTF^e.
This ihey dulv did ^ in the
form of a table-top Pac Man
machine, which will qrate a
luckv CRASH reader s bed
roorr* or whatever -in due
course. Forty nine other
lucky winneroonies wrtl have
their very own personal copy
of On The Run.
Of course there's no
ftion Editor wiN be allowed to
claim any expenses for all
the beer he bought to stitch
up the deal but such is the
ingratitude of lite-...
A chance to win a
Pac Man
arcade machine
N
Thi s i s wh at you ' ve got to do r
take the letters that make up
the words Design Design .
Dark Star and Of% The Hun.
jiggle them around and
make as many other words
out of them as you can. Eacti
word must be at least three
letters long, and your entry
should list the words in
alphabetical order (weVe
got to check them against the
CRASH dictionary, you see).
No foreign word$ allowed,
and put your en t (7 in its very
own envelope^ wfiting the
number of words you've
assembled from the l^etlers
DESIGNDESiGr^ONTHE^
RUNDARKSTAR
on the back. All entries
should arrive at ON THE RUN
COMP, CRASH. PO BOX 10.
LUDLOW. SHROPSHIRE SYB
1DBby25th July*
longest list of words verif-
ied wjth the office diet ion a ry
wins the table fop Pac Man
machine and a copy of Des-
ign Design's (aiest o Her ir>g.
and forty nine runners up fno
I ess I will collect their copy of
On The Run but no Pac Man
machine!
Gel ju m bl i ng /"~^
CRASH Juty 1935 123
1 am intrigued by a recant
development in corrtp^
uter g^mes — that of
promotmg the designer.
Of design team, behmd a
game rather than the
Softvs^are company, tt
•eemed that almost half
of last month's mag was
devoted to Denton
Designs, one team
currently very much in
favour. The Dentons are
probably the prime
example of the new breed
of star programmers, but
they're not the only ones.
One of the games thai I've
reviewed this month has been
published by one company,
while evervthing ^o do wiih the
game tias been created by
anolh^f In this case, what was
form^fly a relatively succassfuP
software pubbshmg company
has now become jusi a destgn
house. This tmnd is going on all
around — the companies with
Ihe marketing muscle become
publishers for a nymber of
dMigni houses, thofnMlves
often created f ron^ the rifr«in*
of sma^ller software publishers.
Now, Ihis is not necefrsarJIy a
bad thing; it couid mean that the
qualiiy o1 product reaching the
consumer improve^- But the
problem with staf' program
mers and teams could be that
they will only add to the corpor-
ate inert ra that the new heavy-
weight softw^r^ publishers are
already acquiring. The fact that a
programmer has Created one
E^^ES^iEing game doe^ not mean
he is a QOo4 enough prog*
ramfner to do il aga^n; !he only
way he may be able to do it
again is to F^gurgrtate the sanrve
formula — h&nce anything that
corner ramot^ty close to being a
hit these days immediate^
spawns a sequel.
While it may be handy for the
wntefs of press releases to be
able to tiay 'the new meoapame
from the authors of XYZ and
XYZ If. it may not toe good for
ihe industry as a whole, because
ivery 'safe' sequel, iir new game
Iby the star team, may be block-
ing the way for new, original
124 CRASH July 1985
rriaterial from fresh sources. If
design teams ere rea^y going w
create benefits by be4::oming
stars, they will have to mowe
away from doing commi^ioned
work, and try to eetablish firmer
identilies on ihefr own at;caunt
— not as puppets of the n-isjor
labels. lfonfc#llyp probably the
only way they could do this at
the momeni is by setting up
their own companies!
A good exam pie of what Vm
talking nbout is Jeff MInter's
compeny, U«in«*oft. Jf ff i$ a
'star programmer who 'las dev-
eloped a unique and Instantly
recognisable style -- and bee^
ause he doesn't wark to com-
mission [S regularty producing
original land oi^arre) software.
Any major labe^ taking him on
would have to give him a totally
free hand — much as record
companies do wilh their stars.
Perhaps the software market is
not yet developed enough, but
as the polarisatK>n we are seeing
Bi the mom en I continues, and
the NMvyweights mop up the
marhfltplflce, design houses wiN
finti that the onus of originaliTv
rests with I hem — and They will
have to disci pi ir^ them§,etves to
demersd the right to be creative.
And nn 1 MfnplMrtY dMi
Btib|Kt, I was eeiounded to r^ed
that Sinclarf will no! be produc-
ing a l2aK Sp&cirum in lime for
Chrtslmas. It seemed like an
eminently sensible idea to me.
iKObibly Qive's best sinoe, well,
the4SK Spectmm. If it's true that
they have millions of pounds
worth o* speccies they can't ^ift
stashed away somewhere, they
should either 11 take them all
down to Highway 61 „ Or 2} con ^
yert them to 128K at fairly
marginal e^iracost.
For watchers of Angus and
Nicola's house (new series
coming soon folks) we have
(a) as} done very little lately
except acquire some plants and
a compact disc> which, while
doing wonders To the Mozart,
has singly failed to bring the
toilet any ctoser. Also, I now
have a new motorbike, which is
red with yellow spots on, to
replace the one which some
th living hyena (probably one of
my fans) nicked a oouple of
weeks ego. VROOOM I
THE
BULGE
Producer: Lothlorieni
Memory required: 48K
Retail price: £3.99
Authors: By David Bolton
and Colin Gordon
pyblished by Argus Press
Software
Ona of th« problents of toing a
software twimm is that one
mnd^ to beooine very i*ded
at>out th@ g&n^s that ar« avail-
abLa^ and the idea of Autuallv
pl^jng_ eomputar games for
recreation often goes down the
plughole. Which is why I find ii
sudS a pleasam surpfite to find
myself engro^#d in a game,
and wanting lo carnr on playing
until I master it. ribe Buige m
such aaaime; it's highly addict-
ive, and that's a very rare thing
arriongst strategy gamei.
I recently reviewed a game by
Lothlonen do tied Ov&riord^^
which I said ai the Lime looked
IlkAlv to be the^r last ind^pend^
ent re tease. TheBufffebm^imH^
out. and 4S ihe hrsi relflflifl ffwt^
urJris Larhlonen in the rofe o(
design house only. The diKer-
ence is incr^fblel II looks as
Though, freed from the incessant
hdBsle of overdue hills, VAT
returns, sales pitches to distnib-
utors, printing foul-ups and aU
the r&5t of it. Lothlor^en have fin-
al ty man aped to concentrate
their energies into the game.
Ttw Bufg» m without question
the biggest tin term^ of pLvying
area) strategy game IVe ieen,
It's also ir>credibly fast {respon-
ses, cursor movement. scfl>l*
iingS and works in simulated rwl
time — half an hour in ihe game
?as5e-s every 15 seconds or so.
he game is very user-fnencity
to play„ and has the facility lo
change the background and unit
colours ^ very useful if you're
playing on a biec*( and white TV
the review of MfiMf^y for
LINE
more thouglits on iliislj. It can
be played m a orm player or two
player game, end lof oiKe
neither game loses out.
The scenario foMows history
Kretty closeJy: the Germans, in a
_wl drtch attempt to avert the
course of Ihe ^rar jm December
19441 launche^l a massive attack
at a weak point in the Allied front
lir^ which was then lying
roughly along the line of the cur-
rent German /French border.
Th@ intention was !o break
through the Ardennes — a fakly
mounta»nous forest area — and
push on towards Antwerp.
The gafne presenis an accur-
ate representation of the terrain^
and a n^ajor feature is the
weather — m the real Battle o<
tiie Bulge, the heavy snow that
fall over Christmas was a maior
factor in stopping the German
advance and in the game it can
play an equally decisive fOle.
The playmg area is 1 1 Chink) 66 x
100 uniis, and y^ii have a fyl^y
S^rollinig rnap window of 24 x 24
liHiis You also have a strategic'
map wi>ndQw which shows you
about a duarter of the total play
ing area at once, and you can
swd^p between the two. Using a
cursor, yotJ move around the
map. giving each of your unfts
difectiona) orders, Thev nKave
towards th^tr allocated targei
until told othefwise: con^bat is
(determined fay strength of num-
bers and a tew other factors,
$iJCh as infantry in towns, gain-
ing extra defensive power Trom
the town.
Racing your cursor over a unit
wilt causa its strength to be dis^
p Fayed on screen, so it is poss-
ibie to keep track of reia^ive
strervgths: mit I have so far
found that the game moves so
fast (even with pausing at everv
opportunity^} thnt I have been
forced to conduct a mad
scramble eastwards to try and
contain I he advance of the
Germans (you can pisy the
German role if you wanl) At the
start of the gan^e each side has
around thirty units, and reinfor-
cements arrive during the
ga.rr^: the ali'm^ have only two
unit types, mfantry and armouTp
while the Germans have both
artillery and rnobife ertillery as
wed. Unit defeats are shown on
a continual scrolling headline on
£y» Qn boil, /
the screen, as are the weatbef
forecasts, and nev^ of reinforce-
ments.
It can be difficult to i^eep up
with all thp intormaiion being
pufnp^d out a( you. and play the
game at the »ame time, but it's
reassuring to note thai ihe
enemy apparentiy makes mis-
takes too — not taking the
easiest routes, for example. The
graph PCS are clear and crisp, and
the colour -Chang ing facility is a
boon. The overall presentation
has improved immeasurably
Siri^ Lothlorien's earlie?;^!
cmtingA, and the mfluencG o^
Afgus on aspects such as pac^
and booklet design is discrete
and \ Ota I ly be nefi c lai , Th is is onf ■
collaboration that ) can only
applaud— and If Argus' involve-
ment means you will actual ty
see The Buige in your High
Street, then it seven better
U I wanted to find a couple of
points m the game to complain
about, i could — I mean, obv-
iously It's not perfect, but simply
the overwhelming scope and
power of the game woufd make
objections niggardly Lothtorien
have come good at last.
Overall Verdict: A CRASH
Snvash, An excel lent Waraarni,
CflASNJuly 1985 125
BATTLE
FOR
MIDWAY
Producer PSS
Memory required: 48K
Retail price: £9.95
Author: Abn Steela
PSS have rec^ntfy scoimt a
remarkabi© succs&ss w»th a waf-
fame on ih^ CM c^Md ThBatrw
urope. so I had high hope$ of
Midway, (heir first outing (as far
as I know) into ^^rgames on the
Specirum. Ifs slways Qo^ ^<^
welcome n^wcsmarA to Ihe
marketp as^p^ially when Ihev
show every sign of moving in
MfdwQY breaks n«w ground m
picki^lng. and looks v^rv im^
I^TKSive; it oom«s in a large
rina-bindar, with the casaeiie
held in a plasiic sleeve inslda^
This, J feel sure. wiM come »n
handy for ka^pino note-cards
and nl&Hcardg m. if you're that
iort of person, not to mention
Oorrespondence vvith the bank,
etc. Perhaps neici nme, chaps, if
yoM coijtd make if a littte bii big-
ger I TOU Id get al [ my Access bi iTs
in ir . , , well, you may hijve
guessed that what Tm trying to
say here ts thai I don't know
what the price of this game is,
but the pack m^kes if took like a
tdfi quilt job, while the game
defirntetyisnot
II s not as bad as Itie 'Great
Space Waste' for example, but it
definrte4v does not live yp to the
pfomise of the pac^. There ate a
couple of maps and a bit of blurb
ofi the pAch which Bttemptsi to
elevate the mystique of the
game still further; very nice
maps, mind you. of Admiral
Vamamoto's Operational Plan,
but bearing virtually no sijimriG'
arfce or relation to the gome,
Furlhetmore, apparerilly Mid-
way was commended in the
strategy gamos section of the
'Goidan Joystick Awards' which
are voted by the readers of
Cofnput^f A VidiffO G^mss. TH
leave the readers of CRASH to
vote on that one las I value my
freelunches)^
The game itself is fairly
slraigtitforwafd — there are
three American groups (two
naval and one from the Midway
air basel and Ihree Japanese jail
naval). Each American group
has aircraft {carrier launched at
sea) while the Japanese have
four carrjarSp but all in one
group. Your objective m m
destroy the four Jap carriefs
(you play the Yankees} <fio racial
bias here).
YcMi have two search aircraft
(based at Midway IsKandl which
you use to locale arid track ihe
Ja p fo rces- 1 n f he easy game, the
courses of the Japanese groups
are actually marked for you. so
finding them is a p^ece of cake:
but even in the hard game firKJ-
ing them is not overfy difficutt,
as you can only play on one
screen, and there is no scrollir^g.
Once you have located the
126 CRASH July 1985
enemy you must Faunch mf
attacks against them. Each
8 roup has effef. lively three
ights of aircrefi which can be
launched and Ihe real time
element of the game mean$ that
you have to wait a minute or two
between aircraft launches. Once
airborne, the attack groups are
directed to the enemy by a
cursor — you seiecf the target
position, and they move there in
their own time Aircrsft ryn out
of fuel after a while, so if you
don't remember to land them,
they will crash. And that is more
or less afl the strategy there is in
the gam^: locate the enemyp
faunch aircraft, blast enemy,
land aircraft-
It ks certainly far less compteK
than some other games of a si m
ilar type, eg AirueferKe by C3
which I reviewed a couple of
issues back. Of course, whiot
Mfdy^ay has that other strategy
games do not is 'arcade' sequ-
ences — which are referred to as
a 'Real Time Air Attacks' in the
booklet. These occur whenever
you attack the Japs or vice versa,
and what you see is the relevant
naval task force laid out before
you, and s horde of gnat I ike sur-
er aft rooming around above
ihem. You man an anti-aircraft
g\jn and can shoot them This
applies to your own planes as
well as the Japs\ which I sup-
pose may appeaf to some arc
ade freaks, but which is totally
irrelevant to the rest of the
gamen and irritating in the
extreme.
Ttiese suicide shoot em up
bits are refniniscent of Beach-
fiesd, but not as well done, ii
really does seem to me that, in
order to app^t to a wider
audienos, a vast amount of war-
gan^ has been jettisoned to
rnake way for en arcacte section
•(Miich is petty and pointless.
Tliere is no indication on the
cover of these 'fieai Time Air
Attacks' and no screen shots to
show what these sections are
like ^ this might create a imie
disappointment with the punt-
ers, meth inks.
And I have another gripe
abDu! Midwsy -~ if s very diffic-
ult to play on a black and white
TVp as the status of the game is
indicated by the colour of the
cu rsof. which is d iff icul t to deter-
mine. Now I knicw that in these
affluent days of economic
growth, full employment etc.
everyone except me has a col-
our TV for their computer, but I
still believe in designing for the
lowest common denortiinator
So pst as. for encample, I critic-
iseo a game t reviewed ^ast issue
because it needed two Spec^
trums with Interface 1s to be
Bl
ipc
ba$
SC
tof ^
?^"-
icir
ak€
mr*
iwe
idr<
lito
wi.
IfW
;ac*
f ul^ly playable, so f atso think that
software designers should t>ear
in mind that i^eir games might
be played in mono. Or perhaps
put a sticker on the front saying
COLOUR TV REQUIRED.
In other as peas the game is
up to current standards; the
cursor is easy to use, the real-
time element works well, infor-
mation can be acxessed abot/t
the vari^ous fleeis and
squadrons. But what it corr^es
down to is that there is not
artough of a game hare — with
only two seaborr^ groups^ nine
air attack units^ and two sir
search units there are just not
enough units under your control
to allow tor much m the way of
thoughtful campaignirtg,
Ovarall verdict: a reasonable
drtHJt tthough not very good
value); PSS need to target their
audieffcce more directly, &n6
stop messing about with arcade
hybrids.
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NTi
When Bob Wakelin was a lad at school, all he
ever wanted to do was artwork for comic
books. This didn't please his art teacher, who
felt that such a talented lad shouldn't chan-
nel his artistic energies into something
which wasn't quite 'art'. During his three
year stint at art college in Wales, his home-
land, Bob's lecturers also tried to put him off
the idea of working for comics — to little
avail.
Graphics coufsm, Ji/irf onc€ tm*d
finished fiye obf^i^toiy 5p*//ofl
ihe dote. Bob st3fted worfu tor a
Uverpoof studm which
specis/is&d fn aftworttfor fh9
mtimtsinmani industry, ^nd
mtmevt^d^ fot of commissicns
^m roci te/i A pfoducing
Artwork forattHMn covers.
Working his way up fmm
Mftijppino Bo^H graduating to
Lscuy and ih&i schtGving
Studio M«ru|}«f status, Bob
dacidad ft was t^ma to branch
oui. Starting as a fraaianca in
t97^ he a f ^5^ bscama invof^ad
m his first fova -— comic boofs —
woftirrg forfiitafvai Comics.
Sadfy, ifw doffaraMChangar^ta
in thosa days m&ant it didr^ Ipa^
too bandsomefy, though.
in t9S6 Bob joinad a band^
pfaying synths. '^t was a whim
rmtfy. /'dgm bomd wfth
drawi^ ai9d Mma friands had a
band ffofmdtham for a whifa.
and wtf did raasonabfy y^^-
Than, as is so oftan tha caw, wa
had a row and spin up '. And tha
manager depamd With t%md$.
StouW ttmmc'frmn^tgaf of 0m
partfctiiaftam/happafy to baa
CMSMrw&atf, Bob would fika to
mmapubticfy that ona day, ha*s
ffOifHt to caich up with you,
^nmmfw^t»^$fm^0}ing\ 80b
totdtna, ^Mgp^m ma a rmason m
ffva. ' There was a sii^htiy avii
undarcLffrant to thamcutar tona
in whkh that ramari was
€fa/ivared.
Back in livatpoo^ his adoptad
h&ma town^ arid with the i>and*$
split behind hirr^ Bob startad
fooking forfraeianca work
again. Throuffh the uncfa of a
mandofa friends of a friend ate^
ha tammt that Des^id Ward was
starting up a software house
dawn the road in Manchasiaf
and was iooking for an
i/fustrator.
Just as ha did the first Job for
Oaya Ward's new company,
OoMTi, atfsofis of paop fa started
to gat in touch, offering work.
Mrs Vffakaiin wasn^ too piaasad
with sonm of tfm commissions
bar husband accepted.
Somethif^g to €fG With girita
cafandar^. . . bui ait that's
behind him now. Mr Waketin
does att ttw irj/ay iftuslraiJans for
CRASH July 198S 129
covers for CAVG Sf}<f comic
books foo — /ysfso / don 'f forg&t
how to dmw superheroes'. Bob
ej^pl^ined, 'but Ocean has
grown &pd ^xp^rHfmfsxj gufckfy
tftBt f'm doing n^ffrty hBlfnty
work for fhe Qn^ client^
ft t&kes abot/t four or five d&ys
from sfa/tio fini$f} m compfews
psinOng for Ocean, "/spend a
day r^wr^ncfng ft sm/Umn
rhre^ or four d^ys compkiinff
fbe artwork, f start off by doing a
very agbi drawing inpenciis, ftif-
ing in ai/ ibe delaif &nd then Air-
brush over so that some ofth^
pencit fines come through tfj»
coiour. t don't ft'ke tfte fubuf&r^
pfastic fook of fnost airbrush
work Bnd find tbst tha pefucii
tBchr^iqM avoids that . . . tgermr-
af/y finish the painting ofCsdd-
ing tiny detaffs in gouache or rtaft
pen/
ft wcutd seem a fairty fogicat
move for an artist working on
€^sseTte fniays for computer
so ftware to trans far his attentitm
to the screen^ destgning charac-
ters or game scneens: fwas
asked eighteen months or so
ago, but f'm not mterested in
msignfng screens at the mom-
ent. Tm not a fover of computer
graphics . . . f'm not happy with
the medium Sure f'lf have to get
into it eventuaffY. f>iJt at the
moment fwQufdgei fruSirEte</
stout not being abfe to get the
detafi f want mto a picture on a
TV screen. Maybe when the
technofogy catcfws up, and the
price of high resofutfon eguip-
menf comes down tlfget invoh^
ed. . . anywayjfwyen't yet dona
afi f c^n wiih the traiHtior^af
madia of painty penciJsndinkf'
So wh^tpfansdt^s this thirty-
two yearotd 'honorary Liver-
pudlian ' have for the futura?
' There are saveraf things f reatty
war^ttodOs not feast g^fb^A
info comics, but f fika noi f&ww-
ing whafs going to happan
nwt *
firmiy a fraakfftcitf Mr Wakefin
ej^pfains that pfanning ahead is
net hf$ tort0- 'f*ve got such a
short attentfon spMP, that it t
made pl&ns for the ftifwv/Vfif
bored before i brought tham mto
^ctfon, ^nd change t^verything
. . . there isn 't reMy time for rorv
ward p/anning anyway', ha
added, 7 ha ven 't had mor0 tf^n
a coupfe of days without work in
the fast few years and ha van *t
taken a hofiday. fcoufdoniy take
a hofiday '' f had a coupfe of
W00ks without any work on —
bui if fiyat happened f woufd be
pacing up and down th^ roam^
bitmg my fingemarfs, worrying
what was going wrong, rather
than enjoying a holiday'.
The Wakeiin fingerr^^Hs are
fairfy safe, methinks. . . .
130 CRASH July tsaS
Y'/V
r^;
Ptou* Add £[,00 to aU of dwp <HAnd# UJC.
ACCESS CARD No: .^-^ -
NAME^ ....,™— ...^ ^■..-,„«,-..- _»
ADDRESS: „^^^..,...^^„„,^„,.u.x....L..
Ii.»5
I Tehtphonf mi -428 91^ {4 Luiitij T«l«]i: Qa7»)
'Q
%
Yf
'"k
Q
6J
Q-
%
\'
s^r^f /
*j^^ fin - 1!*' ! fcr! i!i^s I S^ ■ E5'!. i*
•Eight fterv opponents, each wtth their
own distinctive fighting style.
•smooth-scrolling camera action, giving
the Oest view of the fight at all times,
• Furious three minute rounds wrth
knock-down' and 'knock out' features,
•warm-up and Autoplay sequences.
•ICO. Meter Best K.O. Time, score and
Bonus displayed on screen.
I Additional Doxers to load from tape.
• Hall of fame.
• Endorsed by Heavyweight
Champion - Frank Bruno.
\ "^
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